IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


I.I 


m  la 

m 

I  m    12.0 


IL25  M  1.4 


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1.6 


6" 


Photographic 

Sdmoes 

Corporalion 


23  WIST  MAM  STMIT 

VVItSTM,N.Y.  14SM 

( 71 «)  172-4503 


CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHJVI/JCIVIH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  Inatituta  for  Hiatoricai  Microraproductiona  /  Inatitut  Canadian  da  microraprodiTctiona  hiatoriquaa 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notas/Nptas  tachniquaa  at  bihiiographiquaa 


Tha  Instituta  has  attamptad  to  obtain  tha  b«Bt 
original  copy  availabia  for  filming.  Faaturas  of  this 
copy  which  may  ba  bibliographically  uniqua, 
which  may  altar  any  of  tha  imagas  in  tha 
raproduction.  or  which  may  significantly  changa 
tha  usual  mathod  of  filming,  ara  chaclcad  balow. 


•D 


Coloured  covers/ 
Couverture  de  couleur 


I      I    Covers  damaged/ 


Couverture  endommagAe 

Covers  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Couverture  restaur^  at/ou  pellicuide 

Cover  title  missing/ 

Le  titre  de  couverture  manque 

Coloured  maps/ 

Cartes  g6ographiques  en  couleur 

Coloured  ink  (i.e.  other  than  blue  or  black)/ 
Encre  de  couleur  (i.e.  autre  que  bleue  ou  noire) 


I      I    Coloured  plates  and/or  illustrations/ 


n 


D 


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Planches  et/ou  illustrations  en  couleur 


Bound  with  other  material/ 
Relii  avac  d'aatres  documents 


Tight  binding  may  cause  shadovvs  or  distortion 
along  interior  margin/ 

La  re  liure  sarrie  paut  causer  de  I'ombra  ou  da  la 
distortion  le  long  de  la  marge  intArieura 

Blank  leaves  added  during  restoration  may 
appear  within  the  text.  Whenever  possible,  these 
have  been  omitted  from  filming/ 
11  se  peut  que  certainas  pages  blanches  ajouties 
lors  d'une  restauration  apparaissant  dans  la  taxte, 
mais,  lorsque  cela  Atait  possible,  ces  pages  n'ont 
pas  6tA  fiimAas. 

Additional  comments:/ 
Commentaires  suppl6mentaires; 


L'Institut  a  microfilm^  Ee  meilleur  exemplaire 
qu'il  lui  a  AtA  po«sib?6  de  se  procurer.  Les  details 
da  cat  axamplaira  qui  sont  paut-Atre  uniques  du 
point  de  vue  bibliographiqua.  qui  peuvent  modifier 
une  image  reproduite,  ou  qui  peuvent  exiger  une 
modification  dans  la  mAthoda  normale  de  f ilmage 
sont  indiqute  ci-dessous. 


□ 


D 

n 
n 


Coloured  pages/ 
Pages  de  couleur 

Pages  damaged/ 
Pages  endommagtes 

Pages  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Pages  restaurtas  at/ou  paliiculAes 

Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxed/ 
Pages  dAcolctes.  tachetAes  ou  piquAes 

Pages  detached/ 
Pages  dAtachies 

Showthrough/ 
Transparence 

Quality  of  print  varies/ 
Quality  in^gala  de  Timpression 

Includes  supplementary  material/ 
Comprend  du  material  suppi^mantaira 

Only  edition  available/ 
Seule  Mition  disponibie 

Pages  wholly  or  partially  obscured  by  errata 
slips,  tissues,  etc..  have  been  rafilmed  to 
ensure  the  best  possible  image/ 
Les  pages  totalement  ou  partieMement 
obscurcias  par  un  feuillet  d'errata.  une  pelure. 
etc..  ont  M  filmAes  A  nouveau  de  fapon  A 
obtanir  la  mailleure  image  possible. 


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This  item  is  filmed  at  the  reduction  ratio  checked  below/ 

Ce  document  est  film*  au  taux  de  reduction  indiqu*  ci-dassous. 

10X  14X  18X  22X 


1 


12X 


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26X 


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The  copy  filmad  hare  has  baan  raproducad  thanks 
to  tha  ganarosity  of: 

Library  of  tha  Public 
Archivas  of  Canada 


Tha  imagas  appearing  hara  ara  tha  bast  quality 
possibia  considaring  tha  condition  and  iagibility 
of  tha  original  copy  and  in  kaaping  with  tha 
filming  contract  spacifications. 


L'axampiaira  film*  fut  raproduit  grAca  A  la 
gAnArosit*  da: 

La  bibiiothAqua  das  Archives 
publiques  du  Canada 

Las  images  suivantes  ont  AtA  reproduites  avec  le 
plus  grand  soin,  compte  tenu  de  la  condition  et 
de  la  nettetA  de  I'exemplaire  filmA,  et  en 
conformitA  evec  les  conditions  du  contrat  de 
filmage. 


Original  copies  in  printed  paper  covers  ara  filmed 
beginning  with  the  front  cover  and  ending  on 
the  last  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  Impres- 
sion, or  the  back  cover  when  appropriate.  All 
other  orlginel  copies  ara  filmed  beuinning  on  the 
first  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, end  ending  on  the  laat  page  with  a  printed 
or  illustreted  impression. 


Lee  exemplaires  originsux  dont  la  couverture  en 
papier  est  ImprimAe  sont  filmAs  9n  commenpant 
par  le  premier  plat  et  en  terminant  soit  par  la 
darnlAre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impresslon  ou  d'illustration,  soit  par  la  second 
plat,  salon  le  ces.  Tous  les  autres  exemplaires 
orlginaux  sont  flimAs  en  commenpant  par  la 
premlAre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impresslon  ou  d'illustration  et  en  terminant  par 
la  dernlAre  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
empreinte. 


The  last  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
shall  contain  the  symbol  — »■  (meaning  "CON- 
TINUED"), or  the  symbol  V  (mwinlng  "END"), 
whichever  applies. 


Un  dee  symboles  suivents  apparaftra  sur  la 
dernlAre  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selcn  le 
ces:  le  symbols  -^>  signifie  "A  SUiVRE".  le 
symbols  ▼  signifie  "FIN". 


Maps,  plates,  charts,  etc.,  may  be  filmed  at 
different  reduction  ratios.  Those  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  exposure  ara  filmed 
beginning  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  as 
required.  The  following  diagrame  illustrate  the 
method: 


Les  cartes,  plenches,  tableaux,  etc..  peuvent  Atris 
filmAs  A  dee  taux  da  rAduction  diff Arents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  Atre 
reproduit  an  un  seul  clichA.  11  est  filmA  A  partKr 
de  I'angia  supArieur  gauche,  de  gauche  A  droite. 
et  de  haut  an  bas,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'Imagas  nAcessaire.  Les  diegrammes  suivants 
illustrant  la  mAthode. 


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6 

THE 


€almml  Jijstffrg  0f  WmttmtB, 


UNDER  TUB 


FRENCH,  BRITISH  AND  AMERICAN  GOVERNMENTS, 


FROM  ITS  FIRST  SETTLEMENT  DOWN  TO  THE  TERRITORIAL  ADMINISTRATION 
Off  GENERAL  WILLIAM  HENRY  HARRISON,  BEING  AN  ADDRESS 

DELIVERED 


BY  JUDaE  TL,JSJW, 


BEFORE 


THE  VINCENNES  HISTORICAL  AND  ANTIQUARIAN  SOCIETY, 


FEBBUABY  22D,  1839, 


WITH  ADDITIONAL  NOTES  AND  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


-*♦»- 


i  '  \ 


VINCENNES: 
HARVEY,  MASON  «Sj  Co. 

1858. 


4 ; 


1  ■ 


LETTER  OF  DEDICATION. 

Hox.  Lewis  Cass: — 

Thirtv-five  years  siiicc,  in  the  month  of  June, 
1822,  \vc  made  our  first  acqiuiintance  at  "The 
Post" — ^you  on  your  exploring  expedition  to  the 
head  waters  of  the  ]Mississippi — I  then  a  young- 
man,  jubt  commencing  my  professional  career  in  the 
new  8tate  of  Indiana. 

What  changes  have  been  effected  since  that  pe- 
riod, in  and  along  the  Valleys,  formed  by  the  streams 
you  navigated,  and  flowing  into  the  "Father  of 
Waters,"  whose  fountain  head  you  Avere  probably 
the  first  white  man  to  visit?  Leaving  Detroit  in 
your  birch  canoe — ascending  the  Maumee — crossing 
the  portage  and  descending  the  Wabash  and  Ohio, 
yf^u  entered  the  Mississippi  and  pushed  your  frail  \ 

bark  to  the  sources  of  that  great  river.  How  few 
were  the  resources  of  the  immense  inland  coast,  •    I 

along  which  you  voyaged  at  the  time  mentioned? 
Wluiu  wealth,  population  and  power,  are  now  to  t    j 

1)0   found  along  its  borders.     The  most  sanguine  ;    | 

among  us,  though  we  have  lived  to  witness  the  ;  { 

alteration,  would  have  been  deemed  insane  to  have 
predicted  it,  or  anything  like  it  for  a  half  century 
past.  What  it  will  be  in  another  half  century, 
neither  you  or  I  will  l)e  permitted  to  witness.  Our 
fervent  prayers  should  be,  that  the  same  Provi- 
dence that  has  hitherto  watched  over  and  protected 
us,  may  continue  its  guardianship,  and  preserve  us 
and  those  who  are  to  come  after  us,  the  same  pros- 
perous, happy,  and  above  all,  united  people. 

Aside  from  my  high  regard  for  you  personally,  I 
dedicate  this  small  volume  of  the  incidents  con- 
nected with  the  colonial  history  of  "Post  Vincen- 
nes  "  to  yoUy  because  you  yourself  have  for  the  great- 


?  :  !! 

i   ■ 


•ii 

'  I  ! 


1' 


RUE^ 


IV 


DEDICATION. 


er  portion  of  yoiir  long  and  active  life  been  inti- 
mately associated  with  the  rise  and  progi-ess  of  the 
North-Western  Territory.  To  ym,  whose  early 
life  and  mature  years  have  been  devoted  to  the  ad- 
vancement and  prosperity  of  the  "  Great  West,"  of 
which  for  so  many  years  "The  Post "  was  the  cen- 
tre, and  around  which,  as  a  nucleus,  four  of  the 
great  States  of  the  Union  have  clustered. 

With  great  regard, 

Your  obedient  servant, 

JOHN  LAW. 
Vincennes,  Feb.  24, 1868. 


PREFACE. 

The  great  interest  which  has  been  taken  in  the 
Colonial  History  of  "Post  Vixcexnes"  and  its 
intimate  connection  with  the  Colonial  History  of 
the  whole  North- Western  Territory,  in  addition  to 
the  fact,  that  the  whole  edition  of  the  "address" 
delivered  before  the  "Vincennes  Historical  and 
Antiquarian  Society"  in  1839,  amounting  to  two 
thousand  copies,  has  long  since  been  exhausted,  has 
induced  the  author,  at  the  earnest  solicitation  of 
others,  to  issue  another  edition  with  notes  and  illus- 
trations, which  it  was  impossible  to  combine  with 
the  address — but  which  are  interesting  as  still  furth- 
er elucidating,  the  subject  matter  of  the  address 
itself.  These  memorials  of  the  early  settlement  of 
the  North-Western  Territory,  it  is  due  to  ourselves 
and  those  who  come  after  us,  to  preserve  if  possi- 
ble. The  field  is  a  large  one,  and  what  is  more, 
rich  and  productive  in  incidents  of  the  most  inter- 
esting character.  I  have  but  gleaned  a  few  con- 
nected with  the  early  settlement  of  "The  Post  "  so 
called  *?par  excellence,"  as  the  rallying  point  of  an 
Empire,  extending  from  the  Lakes  to  the  Ohio, 
from  the  Miami  to  the  Mississippi — and  now  con- 
taining within  its  borders  the  four  great  States  of 
Indiana,  Illinois,  Michigan,  and  Wisconsin. 

I  know  of  no  portion  of  our  country  richer  in  his- 
torical incident.  For  surely  a  town  which  is  one  of 
the  oldest  on  the  Continent— one  for  the  possession 
of  which,  the  greatest  nations  of  the  earth  have 
contended — France,  England,  and  the  United 
States.  One  located  upon  the  beautiful  stream 
which  flows  before  it,  the  "  Ouabache."  A  river 
known  and  noted  on  the  maps  of  the  West  long  be- 
fore the  Ohio  was  known  in  the  geography  of  the  Mis. 


VI 


I'Kr.FAf'K. 


sippi  Vall(\v.  A  y'ivdv  which  hr  nearly  a  century 
bore  upon  its  waters  tlie  bateaux  of  the  thi*ee  great 
powers  above  mentioned,  bringing  their  armed  war- 
riors to  occupy,  and  it*  possible,  to  preserve  it.  One 
which  has  seen  within  its  garrison  the  jNIousque- 
taire  of  Louis  XV,  the  grenadier  of  George  the 
III,  the  riHemen  of  Clark,  and  the  regular  troops 
of  Harmar,  St.  Clair,  and  Harrison — one  al)ovo 
which  has  floated  the  " Fleur  de  Lys,"  the  "Cross 
of  St.  George"  and  the  glorious  "Stars  and  Stripes  " 
of  our  beloved  country — is  surely  worthy  of  at  least 
a  passing  notice  by  those  who  are  now  reaping  the 
rich  fruits  of  a  conquest,  made  under  the  most  ad- 
verse and  trying  circumstances,  and  with  a  skill 
and  bravery  not  unsurpassed  in  the  most  glorious 
triumphs  of  the  revolution.  The  reader  need  not 
be  informed  that  I  refer  to  the  conquest  of  "Post 
VixcEXNEs,"  and  the  capture  of  Hamilton  and  his 
troops,  on  the  memorable  24th  of  February  1779, 
by  General  George  Rogers  Clark.  To  him,  in  my 
opinion,  considering  the  results  of  that  conquest, 
the  vast  addition  of  Territory  acquired  by  it,  and 
the  incalculable  advantages  to  the  people  who  now 
occupy  it,  and  to  the  country  at  large,  the  United 
States  are  more  indebted  than  to  any  other  General 
of  the  Revolution — Washington  alone  excepted. 

In  conclusion  I  would  say  to  you  who  inhabit  the 
Territory  thus  acquired,  by  the  valor  and  sufferings 
of  Clark  and  his  gallant  followers,  nearly  eighty 
years  since,  if  I  should  impress  upon  your  minds 
and  those  of  your  children,  who  are  to  succeed  you, 
the  debt  of  gratitude  which  you  owe  to  these  brave 
men,  long  since  gathered  to  their  fathers,  I  shall 
not  have  labored  for  nought  or  written  in  vain. 

JOHN  LAW. 

VixcENNES,  Feb.  24th,  1858. 


CONTENTS. 


ADDRESS  DEFOKE  THE  HISTORICAL  SUCIETV. 

TIkj  Early  Sottl(<inont  nud  Progress  of  Vinconnes — The  Peculiar 
Interest  with  which  the  subject  is  invested — The  first  Sottleuieuts 
at  "Chippo  Coke''  by  the  French — Missionaries — Navigation  of 
Iho  'NVubnsh — Early  Descriptions  of  the  Country—  First  Mention 
of  Vinconnes— Father  Marest's  Mistake — Visit  of  Volney — Inter- 
view between  Father  Mermet  and  the  "  Medicine  Man  " — Terrible 
Ravages  of  Disease — Condition  of  the  People  for  half  a  century 
after  the  settlement  of  the  Town — Francois  Morgan  de  Vinsenne  - 
The  War  between  France  and  England — The  Expedition  of  Col. 
George  Rogers  Clark— Aided  by  M.  Gibault — Col.  Francis  Vigo 
— Clurk  Marches  against  Vinconnes — Sufferings  of  his  Troops — 
His  Letter  to  the  Inhabitants — Order  to  Gov.  Hamilton — Clark 
Captures  the  Fort,  February  !24th,  1779— Terms  of  Capitulation — 
Important  Results  of  Clark's  Conquest — Cession  of  the  North- 
western Territory  by  Virginia  to  the  General  Government — Gen. 
TIarmar — Division  of  the  North-Western  Territory — Diversity  of 
•  Materials  which  enter  into  the  History  of  the  Old  Post 1 — 45 

NOTES  TO  THE  ADDRESS. 

T. — M  istakc  of  the  North  American  Review 45 

II.— Gen.  Clark's  Pecuniary  Difficulties 49 

III. — The  Great  Benefits  to  the  Country  of  Clark's  Conquest — 
Professor  Bliss 50 

APPENDIX. 

Services  of  Clark — His  Patriotism — Shameful   Treatment  by  the 
Government, 53 

GENERAL  HAMILTON. 
His  Imprisonment  and  Career  after  his  Capture  by  Clark 61 

TECUMSEH. 
Character— His  In Huence  with  the  Tribe— Council  with  Gen.  Har- 
rison—His Great  Scheme — Its  Failure 74 

PUBLIC  LANDS. 
The  Disposition,  Settlement  and  Allotment  of  the  Public  Lands 
in  the  "Old   Vincennes  Land  District,"   under  the  French, 
.  English  and  American  Grants lOG 

TERRITORIAL  ACQUISITION. 
The  Extension  of  Our  Territorial  Limits  to  the  Mississippi  at 
the  Treaty  of  Peace  in  1783— Causes  Operating  to  Produce 
that  Extension— Erection  of  Forts  by  Clark — Surveys 129 

LA  BALM'S  EXPEDITION. 
LaBalm's  Expedition  and  Defeat 132 


II 


.  :' 


Vill  CONTENTS. 

ANCIENT  GRANT. 
Copy  of  tho  Oldest  Written  Grant  of  Land  at  Vinoennea 136 

THE  WESTERN  SUN. 
The  Fiiat  Newspaper  Printed  in  tho  Indiana  Territory— The 
Editor— The  Difficulties  Attending  its  Establishment 137 

THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH. 
The  Catholic  Church  at  Vinoennes— Its  Early  Establishment  and 
Progress— Influence  on  the  Indian  Tribes  olong  the  Wabash.. 140 

EARLY    MILITIA. 
List  of  Effective— Men  belonging  to  Capt.  Pierre  Gamelin's  Com- 
pany at  Post  Vinconnes,  July  4th,  1790 157 


Hi 

I';  II 


ADDRESS. 


Having  been  solicited  by  that  portion  of  my  fel- 
low-citizens, who  are  menibors  of  the  "Vincennes 
Historical  and  Antiquarian  Society,"  to  prepare  an 
aihlrcss,  connected  with  the  early  settlement,  the 
rise,  and  the  progress  of  our  ancient  Borough-— I 
have  thought  that  no  occasion  could,  perhaps,  be 
ujore  appropriate  tor  its  delivery  than  the  one  on 
which  we  are  assembled.  Dating  its  origin  long  be- 
fore the  birth  of  the  "Father  of  his  Countiy,"  a  sol- 
itary spot  in  the  wilderness  long  after  his  advent  on 
the  stage  of  action — scarcely  known  ev*^n  at  the 
date  of  his  decease,  we  have  seen  it  in  tii^  present 
century  forming  a  nucleus  fi'om  which  has  arisen 
three  great  States— embracing  a  population  proba- 
bly tivo  times  as  large  as  that  which  belonged  to 
our  parent  State,  Virginia,  at  the  treaty  of  peace  in 
1783,  and  one  of  them,  our  own  State,  at  the  last 
Presidential  election  giving,  of  the  fi'ee  white  suf- 
frage polled  on  that  occasion,  the  fifth  highest  vote 
of  all  the  States  in  the  Union.  Could  it  be  permit- 
ted to  him,  who  was  "first  in  war,  first  in  peace,  and 
first  in  the  hearts  of  his  countrymen,"  to  look  down 
from  the  mansions  of  bliss,  where  "he  rests  from 
Ills  labors,"  upon  the  work  of  his  hands,  and  see 
an  empire  called  into  existence  since  his  departure 


2 


ADDRESS. 


— abounding  in  wealth — in*  intelligence — ^in  patriot- 
ism, and  love  of  country;  inhabited  by  freemen,  the 
descendants  of  those  whom  he  had  led  to  battle, 
strong  in  their  attachment  to  liberty,  and  able  and 
willing  to  maintain  it;  proud  of  the  appellation  of 
American  citizens,  and  deeply  imbued  with  the 
republican  principles  so  admirably  set  forth  in  his 
Farewell  Address ;— could  he  see  the  country  nortli- 
west  of  the  river  Ohio,  which,  even  at  the  period  of 
his  departure  for  another  and  a  better  world,  was 
the  abode,  for  the  most  part,  of  the  Son  of  the  For- 
est, or  the  game  which  constituted  his  daily  subsist- 
ence—now dotted  with  cities  and  villages — covered 
with  cultivated  fields — and  the  residence  of  upwards 
of  two  millions  of  beings,  most  of  whom  have  come 
on  the  stage  of  action  since  that  period ;  how  would 
his  heart  swell  with  joy,  his  bosom  throb  with  pleas- 
ure, at  the  reflection,  that  these  glorious  results,  are 
but  a  part  and  parcel  of  that  admirable  system  of 
government,  the  foundation  of  which  was  cemented 
by  the  blood  of  his  fellow  patriots  of  the  revolution, 
and  the  superstructure  of  which  was  the  work,  in 
part,  of  his  own  hands.  For  aught  we  know,  my 
countrymen,  his  spirit  may  at  this  very  moment  be 
hovering  over  this  assembly.  That  Being,  who  is 
all  wise  and  powerful,  and  who  created  him,  like 
Moses  of  old,  to  lead  our  fathers  from  a  "land  of 
Egyptian  bondage  to  the  Land  of  Promise" — may» 
for  aught  we  finite  beings  loiow,  and  for  the  same 
purposes  for  which  he  created  him,  permit  him  to 
see,  and  to  watch  over,  and  to  guard  the  rights  and 
happiness  of  their  descendants.    Lot  us  at  least  act 


t 
11 


ADDRESS. 


3 


as  if  we  felt  the  influence  of  his  counsels,  and  pre- 
serve them,  as  the  richest  legacy  we  can  hand  down 
to  those  who  are  to  come  after  us.  If  there  is  any 
one  subject  which  should  engage  the  earnest  atten- 
tion of  the  human  mind — ^if  there  is  any  one  in 
which  mankind  are  particularly  interested,  it  is  the 
history  of  their  species.  The  interest  in  the  sub- 
ject is  much  increased  by  the  particular  relation- 
ship which  wfc  bear,  to  the  country  whose  history 
wo  are  so  anxious  to  thoroughly  understiind.  There 
is  a  sort  of  selfishness  in  the  matter,  which,  after 
all,  constitutes  the  trae  love  of  country.  It  is  this 
feeling  which  is  the  father  to  all  genuine  patriot- 
ism, and  without  it,  there  would  be  but  little  in- 
ducement for  action.  We  read  with  infinitely  more 
pleasure,  in  childhood,  the  relations  which  are  given 
us  of  the  struggle  for  independence  here^  than  we 
ever  did,  or  ever  can  that  of  any  other  republic, 
which  has  heretofore,  either  in  ancient  or  modern 
time,  acquired  its  liberty.  We  may,  and  no  doubt 
do,  dote  on  isolated  cases  of  patriotism,  and  love  of 
country,  as  we  find  them  recorded  in  other  times 
and  in  other  places.  Our  feelings  are  enlisted — 
our  blood  comes  quicker  through  our  veins,  while 
reading  the  stories  of  Grecian  and  Roman  struggles 
for  independence — and  it  is  the  same  with  the  more 
modern  contests,  between  the  sovereign  and  his  op- 
pressed subjects.  We  enter  the  lists — ^we  fight  over 
the  battles,  in  our  mind's  eye,  of  Marathon  and 
Thermopylae.  The  strongest  feelings  of  the  human 
heart  are  enlisted  in  behalf  of  the  oppressed,  and  of 
those  contending,  as  we  believe,  for  their  rights. 


ADDRESS. 


'IP 


But  what  boy  who  reads  of  the  struggle  at  Concord^ 
and  the  battle  of  Bunker  Hill,  but  that  feels  an  in- 
terest in  the  story,  which  no  pen,  ancient  or  modern,, 
has  ever  given  to  similar  engagements.  He  feels 
that  his  fathers  were  there  before  him — ^that  the 
very  ground  is  holy — that  the  same  blood  which 
waxed  warm  in  that  contest^  when  bayonet  crossed 
bayonet  in  deadly  strife,  is  i.'unning  through  his  own 

veins ;  and  the  names  of  those  who  fell  there,  be- 
come as  "household  words"  to  him.     Stand  on  its 

gory  heights  and  look  around  you — does  one  expe- 
rience the  same  emotions  on  the  heights  of  Atheny,. 
on  the  Acropolis,  rich  as  it  is  in  classic  association, 
and  in  the  recollection  of  a  gallant  nation  struggling 
for  existence?  No:  The  American  feeling  predom- 
inates, and  it  is  right  it  should  be  so.  ^^Romanus. 
sumy  is  the  true  watch  word  and  battle  cry  of  all  wlio 
love  their  country.  If  this  feeling  exists  to  the  ex- 
tent which  I  have  described  in  relation  to  country, 
does  it  not  run  through  all  the  geographical  divis- 
ions into  which  our  country  is  divided?  The  citi- 
zens of  one  section  will  point  you  to  the  fields  of 
Trenton  and  Princeton^  as  among  the  most  gallant 
exploits  of  the  revolution ;  another  to  the  Brandy- 
wine.  The  Carolinian  will  tell  you,  that  the  battle 
of  Eutaw  was  among  the  most  sanguinary  fought; 
while  the  Virginian  points  to  the  siege  of  York- 
town,  as  the  last  and  brightest  page  in  our  struggle 
for  independence.  These  feelings  are  natural,  they 
are  proper;  and  I  should  think  little  of  that  man's 
heart,  whatever  I  might  of  his  head,  who  did 
not  feel  and  express  them.    It  is  this  attachment 


■ 


ADDRESS.  5 

to  our  own  state,  to  our  own  abiding  place — ^to  the 
land  of  our  nativity,  or  our  domicil,  which  forms 
one  of  the  strongest  links  of  that  chain  which  binds 
us  to  our  common  country.  But  I  will  go  farther. 
There  is,  or  should  be,  not  only  an  attachment  to 
our  common  country,  and  to  the  state  which  we  live 
in,  but  a  strong  and  abiding  attachment  to  the  very 
tovm  in  which  we  are  located.  Without  it,  we  can- 
not feel  personally  interested  in  its  welfare,  in  its 
prosperity,  in  its  improvement — in  all  which  should 
render  it  dear  to  us,  as  the  abiding  place  of  our- 
selves and  of  those  connected  with  us.  I  lay  it 
liown,  therefore,  as  a  principle  not  to  be  contested, 
that  he,  who,  with  tlie  ties  which  should  bind  him 
to  the  place  of  his  birtli  or  his  adoption,  does  not 
feel  warmly,  nay  deeply  interested  in  its  history, 
in  its  prosperity,  in  its  adversity; — ^who,  whether 
"through  good  or  evil  report,"  will  not  protect,  de- 
fend, and  uphold  it,  is  neither  a  good  citizen,  attach- 
ed to  the  state  he  lives  in,  or  devoted  to  his  eountrv. 
Let  others  gainsay  us  as  much  as  they  may;  let 
envy  detract  fi'om  our  merit,  or  jealousy  decry  our 
position,  our  capabilities,  our  business,  or  our  taste ; 
it  is  our  duty  to  stick  to  the  "Post." 

As  to  the  early  history  of  "Chippe  Coke,"  (the 
town  of  Brush  Wood,)  or,  as  known  in  later  days, 
Vincennes,  clouds  and  darkness  rest  upon  it.  At 
what  date  it  first  became  established  as  a  military 
position,  it  is  almost  impossible,  at  this  late  period, 
actually  to  determine.  It  is  well  known  that  it  was 
first  settled  by  the  French.  That  nation,  with  a 
tact  and  judgment  which  is  wonderful,  and  with  a 


6 


ADDRESS. 


:!(! 


I'' 


il'r 

It!' 


prescience  which  seems  to  be  more  than  realized  at 
the  present  time,  in  relation  to  the  country  watered 
by  the  Ohio  and  the  Mississippi  and  the  tributary 
streams;  in  the  latter  part  of  the  17th  century 
attempted  a  union  of  their  settlements  on  the  Mis- 
sissippi, with  their  possessions  in  Canada.  In  order 
to  eflfect  this,  they  established  a  cordon  of  posts 
from  the  Lakes  to  the  Balize,  including  one  or 
more  military  stations  on  the  Illinois  and  the  Wa- 
bash. We  know,  that  early  in  the  18th  century, 
at  least,  there  was  one  here,  one  at  Kaskaskia  before 
that  period,  another  at  Peoria,  and  one  at  Ouiata- 
non,  or  the  mouth  of  the  Wea,  a  short  distance 
below  the  present  site  of  the  town  of  Lafayette. 
The  project  was  a  grand  one,  and  but  for  the  con- 
currence of  circumstances,  usually  attendant  upon 
national  schemes,  when  colonies  are  to  be  forme<l 
at  a  distance — and  which  in  the  event  of  a  war  with 
a  rival  power,  are  the  first  objects  of  attack  and  con- 
quest, might  have  been  successful.  And  "New 
France,"  for  that  was  the  intended  designation  of 
this  Transatlantic  Empire,  might,  in  all  the  ele- 
ments which  constitute  wealth  and  power,  by  this 
time  have  rivalled  its  founder;  and  we,  instead  of 
being  plain  republican  citizens,  have  formed  a  por- 
tion of  the  subjects  of  the  "Grand  Monarque."  But 
the  war  with  Great  Britain,  which  was  concluded  by 
the  peace  of  1763,  transferred  Canada  to  the  British 
dominion,  and  Louisiana  by  the  secret  treaty  with 
Spain  in  1762,  to  the  latter  power.  France  was 
thus  stripped  of  all  her  possessions  in  the  New 
World — ^possessions  acquired  by  immense  expendi- 


ADDRESS. 


ture  both  of  blood  and  treasure.  It  was  in  the  ac- 
complishment of  this  bold  and  magnificent  scheme 
for  western  empire,  on  the  part  of  the  French  Court, 
that  the  settlements  on  the  Illinois  and  Wabash 
were  formed.  But  it  was  not  the  military  sub- 
jection alone  of  the  western  country  that  France 
had  in  view.  There  was  another  and  a  higher  con- 
sideration— it  was  the  establishment  of  the  Catholic 
religion — ^the  established  religion  of  France,  which 
she  wished  to  introduce  into  her  possessions  on  the 
continent.  Wherever,  therefore,  she  sent  a  detach- 
ment of  her  troops,  she  accompanied  it  with  a  Mis- 
sionary of  the  Cross — and  while  the  aborigines  of  the 
counl-ry  were  kept  in  awe  by  the  force  of  her  arms, 
it  is  no  less  true,  and  certainly  more  creditable, 
that  the  child  of  the  forest  was  led  to  obedience  by 
the  milder  but  not  less  powerful  influences  of  the 
new  creed,  which  their  fathers,  the  "  Robes  Noir," 
<»r  Black  Robes  as  they  called  them,  introduced  to 
their  understanding.  It  is  probably  their  imagina- 
tion may  have  been  as  much  influenced  as  their 
judgment.  But  be  this  as  it  may,  it  is  an  admitted 
fact,  that  the  Jesuits  who  accompanied  their  expe- 
ditions, did  much  to  soften  their  feelings  and  civ- 
ilize their  manners,  during  the  short  period  they 
occupied  the  country;  and  the  influence  of  their 
doctrines,  and  the  amenity  and  kindness  of  their 
manners,  are  yet  remembered  by  the  tribes  who 
occupied  a  few  years  since  the  country  between  the 
Lakes  and  the  Ohio.  No  set  of  men,  in  pursuit  of 
any  object  temporal  or  spiritual,  ever  endured 
greater  hardships,  suffered  more  perils,  or  made 


8 


ADDRESS. 


r 


•ili, 

;  III : 


greater  sacrifices,  than  these  Reverend  Fathers. 
Not  content  simply  with  the  establishment  of  their 
"tabernacles  in  the  wilderness,"  they  followed  the 
Indian  to  his  hunting  gi'ounda — threaded  forests — 
swam  rivers— crossed  prairies  in  the  midst  of  win- 
ter— ^frequently  for  days  Avithout  food,  and  often 
nearly  without  raiment.  The  supposed  conversion 
of  a  single  Indian  to  the  doctrines  of  the  Catholic 
church — ^the  baptism  of  an  infant,  seems  to  them 
to  have  been  an  ample  reward  for  all  their  labor, 
for  all  their  toil,  and  for  all  their  sufferings. — 
With  us  in  thase  latter  days,  differing  as  most  of 
us  do  in  our  religious  opinions  from  this  school  of 
ecclesiastics,  it  is  almost  impossible  to  do  them  jus- 
tice. As  a  whole,  their  history  has  been  but  little 
studied,  and  less  understood.  They  have  neither 
had  their  Livy  or  their  Polybius.  If  the  history 
of  these  men — of  their  exertions,  of  their  influence, 
of  their  actions,  for  good  or  evil,  ever  be  written 
with  candor,  it  must  be  in  this  country,  the  scene  of 
many  of  their  labors,  and  I  might  well  add  of  their 
sufferings  and  their  death.  "No  subject  would 
form  a  more  imposing  or  interesting  theme  for  the 
historian,  none  demand  higher  qualifications,  more 
laborious  research,  and  above  all  the  most  dignified 
superiority  to  all  the  prepossessions  of  age,  of  coun- 
try, and  of  creed."  It  is  well  known,  that  accord- 
ing to  the  rules  of  the  order  of  St.  Ignatius,  annual 
reports  were  required  from  his  followers  wherever 
located.  The  Jesuit,  whether  in  the  cold  regions  of 
Labrador,  in  the  Tropics,  in  Cochin  China;  in  fine, 
in  Europe,  Asia,  Africa,  or  America,  transmitted 


i"i 


ADDRESS. 


9 


to  his  superior,  at  the  end  of  the  year,  an  account 
of  his  stewardship,  in  the  shape  of  a  pastoral  letter. 
But  it  was  not  simply  the  spiritual  situation  of  his 
vineyard  he  delineated.  He  described  the  country, 
its  geography,  its  topography,  its  customs,  manners, 
habits,  traditions,  language,  dialects;  in  short,  every 
matter  which,  either  in  a  religious,  and  I  might  add 
political  view,  would  enable  his  superior  to  judge  of 
the  necessity  of  further  exertion  or  additional  aid. 
And,  strange  as  it  may  seem,  the  best  and  only 
authentic  account  of  the  country  bounded  on  the 
north  by  the  Lakes,  east  by  the  Miami,  south  by 
the  Ohio,  and  west  by  the  Mississippi,  one  century 
since,  is  in  the  relations  made  by  the  Jesuit  Fath- 
ers, giving  an  account  of  the  Missionary  labors  in 
that  quarter.  And  I  am  indebted  to  one  of  these 
communications  in  the  ''^LeUres  Edifiantet  Curieuse,^^ 
(Letters  Edifying  and  Curious),  published  in  Paris 
in  1761,  for  the  first  written  notice  of  the  "Post." 
It  is  contained  in  a  letter  written  by  "Father 
(-irabriel  Marest,  Missionary  of  the  company  of  Je- 
sus, to  Father  Grermon  of  the  same  company,"  dated 
at  Kaskaskia,  an  Illinois  village,  otherwise  called 
the  "Immaculate  Conception  of  the  Holy  Virgin," 
November  the  9th,  1712,  one  hundred  and  twenty- 
six  years  since.  Cast  your  eyes  back,  my  friends, 
to  this  period,  and  in  your  mind's  eye  run  over  the 
period  since  intervening.  Where  now  is  the  good 
Father,  and  the  friend  to  whom  he  communicated? 
Gathered  to  their  fathers :  generation  after  genera- 
tion have  passed  away — the  priest  and  the  catechu- 
men have  returned  to  the  dust  from  whence  they 


10 


ADonses. 


■',■ 
i-; 

1^; 


came,  and  the  places  which  "once  knew  them,  know 
them  no  more  for  ever."  One  hundred  and  twenty- 
six  years  since,  and  the  country  now  abounding  in 
all  the  materials  which  constitute  a  great  nation, 
was  all  but  a  desert  to  the  banks  of  the  Delaware. 
It  is  a  singular  fact,  yet  no  less  true,  that  the 
M-'abash  was  known  and  navigated  by  the  whites 
long  before  the  Ohio  was  known  to  exist.  Indeed, 
all  the  maps — and  I  have  seen  two  before  the  year 
1730— call  the  Ohio  at  its  confluence  with  the  Mis- 
sissippi, "Ouabache."  The  reason  is  obvious,  when 
one  reflects  for  a  single  instant,  that  the  whole 
course  of  travel  to  the  Mississippi  was  either  by 
the  Illinois  or  the  Wabash.  The  only  communica- 
tion with  the  the  Mississippi  was  by  the  French  in 
the  latter  part  of  the  17th  and  early  in  the  18th 
century,  and  was  from  the  Lakes.  The  priest  and 
the  soldier  were  the  the  only  travelers.  They  as- 
cended the  Maumee,  crossed  the  Portage,  and 
descended  the  Wabash  to  this  post.  The  nations 
of  Indians  on  the  south  side  of  the  Ohio  were  at  war 
with  those  on  this  side.  They  wished  to  cross  to 
Kaskaskia;  the  Indians  here  told  them  there  was 
danger  in  descending  further.  They  wend  their 
way  across  Illinois,  aiming  at  the  Mississippi;  they 
descended  that  stream  to  New  Orleans ;  and  when 
they  found  the  Ohio  pouring  its  flood  into  the 
"Father  of  Waters,"  they  naturally  enough  sup- 
pose it  to  be  the  same  stream  they  had  navigated 
in  their  voyage  here,  and  delineate  it  on  their  maps 
as  the  "Ouabache."  In  corroboration  of  the  re- 
mark here  made,  permit  me  to  quote  from  a  por- 


ADDRESS. 


11 


tion  of  the  Reverend  Father's  letter,  above  referred 
to.     In  page  325  describing  the  Illinois,  he  says : 
"About  eight  leagues,  or  240  miles  below  this,  (he 
is  writing  from  Kaskaskia,)  on  the  Illinois  side, 
that  is  the  east  side,  (for  the  Mississippi  runs  gen- 
erally from  north  to  south,)  there  empties  another 
tine  river  called   "Ouabache."     It  comes  from  the 
north-east.    It  has  three  branches,   one  of  which 
extends  as  far  as  the  Iroquois ;  the  other  runs  into 
Virginia  and  Carolina,  and  the  third  heads  among 
the  Miamis."     Now  it  is  very  evident  that  the  river 
thus  described  was  the  Ohio,  and  that  branch  of  it 
which  is  said  to  run  up  to  the  country  owned  by 
the  Miamis,  was  the  Wabash.     The  other  branches 
were  the  main  river,   and  the  Tennessee,  or  the 
Cumberland.     The  writer  gives  a  very  gTaphic  de- 
scription of  the  country  bordering  on  the   "Oua- 
bache;" says  it  is  rich  in  minerals,  especially  lead 
and  tin,   and  that  if  experienced  miners  were  to 
(tome  out  from  France  and  work  the  mines,  ho  has 
no  doubt  "gold  and  silver"  would  be  discovered  in 
abundanre.    That  the  quantity  of  "buffalo  and 
bear"   which  was  to  be  found  on  the  banks  of  the 
Wabash,  was  incredible;  and,  in  the  true  spirit  of 
an  epicure,  the  good  Father  says — "the  meat  of  a 
young  bear  is  very  delicious,  for  I  have  tried  it." 
Thus  we  see  that  in  point  of  antiquity,  and  virtue 
of  prior  discovery  and  occupation,  the  stream  we 
live  on  takes  precedence  of  the  ^^  Belle  Riviere.^^* 

But  to  return  to  the  immediate  subject  of  our 
address.    The  first  notice  of  Vincenneff  which  I  have 


«See  Note  A. 


12 


ADDRESS. 


1.    :; 


m 


I 


been  enabled  to  find,  with  no  little  research,  is  the 
one  given  by  Father  Marest  in  the  same  letter  from 
which  I  have  made  the  above  quotation,  and  is  on 
])age  333  of  the  volume  referred  to.  It  will  be  re- 
membered that  Volney,  who  was  here  in  179G,  and 
whose  active  mind,  led  him  to  various  enquiries  in 
relation  to  our  first  settlement,  gives  it  as  his  opin- 
ion, that  the  first  establishment  made  here  by  the 
French  was  in  1735.  And  he  states  the  ftxct,  that 
lie  conversed  with  the  oldest  French  settlers,  and 
with  all  whom  he  supposed  could  give  any  informa- 
on  the  subject.  It  will  also  be  recollected  that  the 
date  of  Ftither  Marcst's  letter  from  Kaskaskia  is 
November  the  9th,  1 712,  twenty-three  years  before 
t  he  period  assigned  by  Volney  for  the  establishment 
of  a  post  here.  In  the  letter  referred  to,  of  Father 
Marest,  he  says — "The  French  having  lately  estab- 
lished a  Fort  on  the  river  Wabash,  demanded  a 
^Missionary,  and  Father  Mermet  was  sent  to  them." 
Now  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  river  he  men- 
tioned, was  the  one  we  live  on,  and  not  the  Ohio 
with  which  it  was,  as  I  have  mentioned,  confound- 
ed; and  for  this  very  obvious  and  plain  reason,  that 
the  French  never  had  a  ^^Foft"  on  the  Ohio  within 
tlie  limits  eitiier  of  Indiana,  or  Illinois.  And,  it  is 
equally  clear  to  my  mind,  that  the  post  mentioned, 
was  the  one  afterwards,  par  excellence,  called  "au 
Poste,"or  "the  Post,"  and  subsequently  "PostVin- 
cennes."  If  I  am  right  in  my  conjecture,  the  set- 
tlement of  this  place  by  the  French,  may  be  dated 
back  as  early  as  the  year  1710  or  '11 — ^probably  the 
former,  inasmuch  as  the  Fort  must  have  been  built 


ADDRESS. 


13 


and  garrisoned  bofox'O  an  application  was  made  for 
a  missionary;  and  it  would  take  some  timo  to  an- 
swer the  call  from  Kaskaskia,  the  nearest  point 
wliere  a  i)riest  could  be  obtained.  The  lirst  sottlo 
nient  of  this  place  then,  by  the  whites,  was  in  the 
year  1710,  twenty-fiv^e  years  before  the  penod  as- 
signed by  Volney.  But  it  will  not  do  to  let  Father 
Mermet  g(>,  without  a  more  particular  notice  of  him 
and  his  visit,  seeing  this  was  the  first  "labor  of 
love"  ever  undertaken  in  our  ancient  Borough.. 
It  seenrLs,  the  moving  impulse  which  led  this  "her- 
ald of  the  cross"  to  the  shores  of  the  Wabash,  an. 
impidse  which  drew  many  of  his  brethren  into  the 
western  wilderness,  was  the  conversion  of  a  tribe  of 
Indians  now  extinct,  but  probably  a  branch  of  the 
Miamis — as  he  says  they  spoke  that  language — 
and  called  "Mascoutins,"  who  had  their  village 
near  the  Fort;  and  who,  from  their  sti*ong  attach- 
ment to  the  superstitions  of  their  medicine  men, 
were  very  little  disposed  to  hear  "  the  true  faith," 
as  delivered  by  the  Reverend  Father.  Resolving 
in  his  own  mind  the  best  method  of  overcoming 
their  unbelief  in  the  true  church,  he  concluded  to 
have  a  sort  of  Owen  and  Campbell  debate,  a  public 
iliscussion  with  their  principal  medicine  men,  in  the 
presence  of  the  nation.  But  let  us  hear  the  fath- 
er's own  account  of  the  matter.  "The  way  I  took," 
says  the  Father,  "  was  to  confound,  in  the  presenct; 
of  the  whole  tribe,  one  of  these  charlatans,  whose 
'Manitou,'  or  Great  Spirit  which  he  worshipped, 
was  the  'buffalo.'  After  leading  him  on  insensibly 
to  the  avowal,  that  it  was  not  the  buffalo  that  be- 


:    ( 


14 


ADRUE.S8. 


I 


worshipped,  Imt  the  'Manitou/  or  Spirit  of  the  buf- 
falo, whicli  was  under  tlie  earth,  and  which  anima- 
tod  all  buffaloes,  wli\  h  heals  the  sick,  rnd  has  all 
])()wer;  I  asked  him  if  other  beasts,  the  bear  for 
instance,  and  wKwh  some  of  his  nation  worshipped, 
was  not  equally  inhabited  by  a  Manitou,  which  was 
under  the  earth?  "Without  doubt,"  said  the  Grand 
Medicine.  "If  this  is  so,"  said  the  Missionary, 
"men  ought  to  have  a  Manitou  who  inhabits  them." 
"Nothing  more  certain,"  said  the  Medicine  man ; — 
"ought  not  that  to  convince  you,"  said  the  Father, 
pushing  his  argument,  "that  you  are  not  very  reas- 
onable? For  if  man  upon  the  earth  is  the  master 
of  all  animals;  if  he  kills  them,  if  he  eats  them; 
does  it  not  follow  that  the  Manitou  which  inhabits 
him,  nmst  necessarily  have  a  mastery  over  all  other 
Manitous?  Why  then  do  you  not  invoke  him,  in- 
stead of  the  Manitou  of  the  bear  and  the  buffalo, 
when  you  are  sick?  "  "  This  reasoning  "  says  the 
father,  "disconcerted  the  charlatan."  But  like 
much  other  good  logic  in  the  world,  I  am.  sorry  to 
add,  in  his  own  words,  "this  was  all  the  effect  it 
produced." 

A  severe  malady  broke  out  in  the  village.  The 
Indians,  says  the  father,  gathered  around  the  fort^ 
for  the  purpose  of  making  a  great  sacrifice  to  their 
Manitou.  They  slew  thirty  or  forty  dogs,  hoisted 
them  on  poles,  and  forming  a  procession,  danced 
and  sang  around  the  fort.  Finding  their  own 
efforts  unable  to  stop  the  pestilence,  they  appealed 
again  to  the  Missionary,  to  stay  the  destroying  an- 
gel, who  was  carrying  them  off  daily.    But  it  seems, 


ADDRESS. 


15 


neither  the  "  Manitou"  of  the  French  or  of  the  In- 
dian was  able  to  arrest  the  plague.  For,  says  the 
father,  "notwithstanding  all  my  attention,  more 
than  half  the  village  perished."  How  long  Father 
Merniet  remained  here,  we  are  unable  to  say.  We 
find  he  returned  to  Kaskaskia,  and  ultimately  died 
there.  His  place,  no  doubt,  was  supplied  by  the 
labors  of  another;  but  by  whom  and  when,  is  un- 
known. The  records  of  the  Catholic  church  here 
make  no  mention  of  a  missionary,  until  the  year 
1749,  when  Father  Meurin  came  here;  and  from 
that  time,  until  the  present,  there  has  been  a  reg- 
ular succession  of  the  priesthood. 

From  the  period  to  which  I  alluded,  and  for  the 
term  of  nearly  half  a  century,  there  would  be  but 
little  to  notice  in  the  progress  of  this  settlement, 
even  if  we  had  the  materials  of  its  rise  and  progress 
t()  operate  on.  Isolated  as  it  was,  there  were  no 
events  either  in  its  political  or  social  character, 
which  would  afford  much  interest.  There  was  prob- 
ably a  succession  of  priests  and  commandants,  who 
governed  the  little  world  around  them,  with  infinite 
power  and  authority ;  from  whose  decrees  spiritual 
or  temporal,  there  was  no  appeal,  and  none  desired. 
''No  colony  can  long  remain  separated  from  its 
])arent  stock  until  it  exhibits  a  peculiar,  and  dis- 
tinct character.  Climate,  situation,  and  country, 
although  not  exclusively  the  agents  in  forming  the 
character,  must  nevertheless  be  admitted  to  have 
great  influence."  The  character  of  the  society  was 
a  mixture  of  military  and  civil;  more  however,  of 
the  former,  than  the  latter.    The  white  portion  of 


le 


ADDRESS. 


m 


%m 


m  H  *■-',( 


li  m 


in 


M 


tUill 


the  population  was,  it  must  be  remembered,  essen- 
tially French.     In  this  remote  country  there  were 
few  objects  to  urge  to  enterprizo.     Beggary  was  un- 
known.   The  necessaries  of  life  were  easily  pro- 
cured; <ind  beyond  these^  there  were  no  wants  to  be 
supplied.    Hospitality  was  exercised  by  all — ^for 
there  were  no  taverns.    Of  what  use  were  codes  of 
law,  judges,  prisons,  in  such  a  society.     Each  dis- 
trict had  its  commandant;  and  their  proceedings 
were  singular  enough.    The  party  complaining  ob- 
t<iined  a  notification  from  the  commandant  to  his 
adversary  of  his  complaint,  accompanied  by  a  com- 
mand from  the  commandant  to  render  justice.     If 
tliis  had  no  effect,  he  was  notified  to  appear  before 
the  commandant,  on  a  particular  day,  and  answer 
the  complaint;  and  if  the  last  notice  was  neglected,, 
a  sergeant  and  file  of  men  were  sent  to  bring  him. 
It  was  a  very  short  and   summary  process,  of  the 
John  Doe  and  Richard  lloe  kind — no  SheriflP,.  niv 
taxation  of  costs.     The  party  recusant  was  fined  and 
kept  in  prison  until  he  did  his  adversary  justice; 
and  when  extremely  refractory,  the  cat-o-nine  tails 
brought  him  to  a  sense  of  justice.    And  I  am  not 
quite  sure,  that  in  many  cases,  the  same  speedy  and 
exact  method  of  dispensing  justice   might  not  be 
practiced  in  these  latter  days.     Sure  I  am^  if  it  was, 
much  unnecessary  litigation  would  be  avoided.     In 
such  a  state  of  things,  of  what  use  were  learning 
and  science?     Few  could  read,  fewer  write;  and  a* 
to  arithmetic,  it  was  a  lost  art.     Their  dealings 
were  marked  by  honesty  and  integrity,  and  peltrien 


ADbRKSS. 


W 


were  their  standard  of  value.*  Honorable,  puno- 
tual  in  their  dealings,  hospitable  to  strangers,  and 
with  great  kind  feeling  and  brotherly  love  towards 
one  another; — these  may  be  considered  as  their  vir- 
tues. In  opposition  to  them,  it  must  be  said,  that 
they  were  devoid  of  public  spirit,  enterprize,  or  in- 
genuity ;  were  indolent  and  uninformed.  They  told 
me,  says  Volney,  (the  Americans)  in  his  visit  here 
in  1796,  "that  the  Canadians  had  only  themselves 
to  blame  for  their  hardships.  W'c  must  allow,  say 
they,  tliat  they  are  a  kind,  hospitable,  sociable  set 
of  fellows;  but  in  ignorance  and  idleness  they  beat 
tiie  Indians.  They  know  nothing  of  civil  or  do- 
mestic affairs ;  their  women  neither  sew  nor  spin,  or 
make  butter,  but  pass  their  time  in  gossiping  and 
Uttle.  The  men  hunt,  fish,  roam  in  the  woods, 
bask  in  the  sun.  They  do  not  lay  up,  as  we  do,  for 
winter,  or  provide  for  a  rainy  day.  They  can't 
cure  pork  or  venison,  make  sour  krout,  or  spruce 
beer."  But  I  doubt  much,  my  friends,  whether  all 
these  useful  and  elegant  accomplishments  of  the 
American,  of  "curing  pork,  making  sour  krout  and 
si>ruco  beer,"  which  have  been  inculcated  by  them 
U)  their  French  neighbors,  have  much  improved 
their  social  and  moral  condition.  If  happiness  in 
this  world  consists,  and  it  does  so  in  a  great  degree, 
in  freedom  from  care,  the  population  of  our  village 
were  the  happiest  of  the  human  family;  all  their 
desires  fulfilled.  But  the  race  is  nearly  extinct; 
tiiey  have  become  amalgamated  with  another  peo- 
ple; their  habits,  manners,  opinions,  nay  language 


*S«e  VoU  & 


18 


ADDRESS. 


$: 


;i 


,:-?li 


I'il , 


itself,  is  changing;  and  in  a  few  years,  the  tall, 
manly,  arrowy  form  of  the  descendant  of  St.  Louis — 
mild,  peaceful,  and  always  i)olite — ^with  his  blanket 
capotey  the  blue  kerchief  round  his  head,  and  san- 
daled feet,  will— as  some  of  us  have  seen  them  in 
our  younger  days,  wending  their  way  on  Sundays 
in  their  untired  and  unironed  cart,  to  the  old  wood- 
on  chapel  of  St.  Francis  Xavier,  with  smiling  faces, 
and,  as  I  believe,  with  sincere  devotion — be  seen 
"no  more  forever."  A  new  generation,  a  new  race, 
a  new  people  have  encroached  upon  their  posses- 
sions; and  the  laws  of  civilization,  as  sure  as  tho 
laws  of  nature,  will  force  them  to  yield  to  the  man- 
ners, habits,  customs,  dress  and  language,  of  their 
more  powerful  neighbors.  AVh  ether  by  the  change? 
their  physical  or  moral  condition  is  bettered,  is  a 
question  that  might  be  well  mooted.  For  my  own 
part,  I  doubt  it.  I  believe  they  were  a  happier, 
better,  and  more  moral  people  before  their  connect 
tion  with  the  Americans,  than  since;  and  that  the 
change  of  government,  has  been  productive  of  no 
good  to  their  social  condition.  An  evidence  of 
their  attachment  to  the  old  state  of  things,  is  the 
fact,  also  noticed  by  Volney,  "that  the  first  thing 
they  demanded  on  their  cession  to  the  United 
States,  was  a  military  commandant." 

I  have  before  remarked,  that  from  the  advent  of 
Father  Mermet  as  missionary  here,  in  the  year 
1710  or  '11,  for  nearly  half  a  century,  there  were  no 
important  events  connected  with  the  history  of  our 
"Post,"  but  a  continued  succession  of  commandant* 
and  missionaries.    I  should,  however,  fail  in  a  very 


t 


T^Vi 


ADDRESS. 


19 


important  part  of  our  history,  were  I  not  to  notice, 
during  that  period,  the  commander  after  whom  our 
town  is  named.  Francois  Morgan  de  Vinsenne 
(  "  Vinsmne,^^  for  so  he  spelled  his  name,)  was  an  offi- 
cer in  the  service  of  the  King  of  France,  and  serv- 
ing in  Canada  probably  as  early  as  1720,  in  the 
regiment  "de  Carignan."  At  any  rate,  as  we  are 
informed,  he  was  engaged  in  some  service  with  an- 
other officer  on  the  Lakes  towards  Sault  St.  Marie, 
for  the  Governor  of  Canada,  M.  de  Vaudriel,  in 
1725.  At  what  time  he  took  possession  here,  is 
not  exactly  known ;  probably  somewhere  about  the 
year  1732.  There  is  nothing  on  our  records  to 
show,  but  an  act  of  sale  made  by  him  and  Madame 
Vinsenne,  the  daughter  of  Monsieur  Philip  Long- 
prie  of  Kaskaskia,  and  recorded  there.  The  act  of 
sale,  dated  5th  January,  1735,  styles  him  "an  offi- 
<x)r  of  the  troops  of  the  King,"  and  "commandant 
nu  paste  (lit  Oucbache;"  the  same  deed  expressing 
that  Madame  Vinsenne  was  absent  at  the  Post. 
Her  signature  being  necessary  to  the  deed,  she  sent 
her  mark,  or  cross,  which  is  testified  to  as  hers,  "X 
the  mark  of  Madame  Vinsenne,"  and  showing  that 
the  good  lady  was  not  very  far  advanced  in  the  ru- 
diments, though  her  husband  was  commandant,  and 
her  father  the  wealthiest  citizen  of  Kaskaskia.  The 
will  of  Monsieur  Longprie,  his  father-in-law,  dated 
the  10th  of  March,  1735,  gives  to  him,  among  other 
things,  408  lbs.  of  pork,  which  he  wishes  "kept  safe 
until  the  amval  of  Mona.  Vinsenne,"  who  was 
then  at  the  Post.  There  are  other  documents  there 
signed  by  him  as  a  witness,  in  1733-'4;  among  them 


20 


AI>DRESS. 


in: 


"w- 
'M 


one  of  a  i*eceipt  for- 100  pistoles,  received  ftom  hi» 
father-in-law,  on  his  marriage.  From  all  these 
proofs,  I  think  it  evident  that  he  was  here  previous 
to  1733,  and  left  with  his  command,  on  an  expedi- 
tion against  the  Chicasaws,  in  1736„  by  orders  from 
his  superior  officer  at  New  Orieans,  "Monsieur 
d'Artagette,"  commandant  for  the  King  in  Illinois, 
and  in  which  expedition,  according  to  ^^Charle- 
vou,''  M.  St.  Vinsenne  was  killed.  But  as  the  facts 
are  not  generally  known,  I  quote  his  words  among 
the  last  of  his  volume:  "We  have  just  received 
verv  had  news  from  Louisiana,  and  our  war  with 
the  Chickasaw  s.  The  French  have  been  defeated ; 
among  the  slain  is  'Monsieur  de  Vinsenne,*  who 
ceased  not  until  his  last  breath  to  exhort  the  men 
to  behave  worthy  of  their  religion  and  their  coun- 
try." Thus  perished  this  hero  and  gallant  officer,, 
after  whom  our  town  is  named.  We  may  well  be 
jn'oud  of  its  origin.  On  looking  aj;  the  register  of 
the  Catholic  churchy  it  will  be  found,  that  the  change 
of  name  fi'om  Vinsenne  to  Vincennes,  its  present 
appellation,  was  made  as  early  as  1749..  Why  or 
wherefore,  I  do  not  know.  I  wish  the  original  or- 
thography had  been  observed,  and  the  name  spelled 
after  its  founder^  with  the  s  instead  of  the  t,  as  it 
should  be. 

The  war  between  France  and  England,  which 
broke  out  about  1754,  deprived  the  former  of  all  her 
possessions  in  this  country;  Canada  was  added  to 
Great  Britain,  and  Louisiana,  as  before  remarked,, 
to  Spain.  The  English,  anxious  to  acquir«!  posses- 
sion of  the  country,  soon  after  the  peace  of  1763i 


1 
}\ 

n 


Ti   '" 


ADDB£SS. 


31 


took  possession  of  it  The  subsequent  events  will 
introduce  the  American  population  on  the  stage  of 
action ;  and  a  brief  but  accurate  history  of  the  events 
which  have  occurred  since,  will  close  my  notice  of 
it.  The  inhabitants  occupying*  the  Post,  seem  to 
have  but  little  considered  or  regarded  the  change. 
Their  old  laws,  customs,  manners,  and  habits,  were 
continued ;  and,  as  remarked  by  one  who  was  pres- 
t3nt,  "the  change  of  government  would  have  hardly 
been  khown."  The  difficulties,  however,  between 
tlie  mother  country,  and  her  colonies,  were  about  to 
produce  a  change,  w^hich  has  been  felt  to  the  present 
day  among  the  ancient  inhabitants  of  the  "Post." 
I  refer  to  the  capture  of  it  by  Gen.  George  Rogers 
(Mark,  February  23, 1779 — sixty  years  from  the  day 
after  the  one,  which  we  are  now  commemorating. 
Of  this  expedition,  of  its  results,  of  its  importance, 
of  the  merits  of  those  engaged  in  it,  of  their  l)ra ve- 
ry, of  their  skill,  of  their  prudence,  of  their  success, 
a  volume  would  not  more  than  suffice  for  the  details. 
Suffice  it  to  say,  that  in  my  opinion — and  I  have 
accurately  and  critically  weighed  and  examined  all 
the  results  produced  by  any  contests  in  which  we 
were  engaged  during  the  revolutionary  war^— that 
ff)r  bravery,  for  hardships  endured,  for  skill  and 
consummate  tact  and  prudence  on  the  part  of  the 
(•ommander,  obedience,  discipline  and  love  of  coun- 
try on  the  part  of  his  followers ;  for  the  immense 
l)enefits  acquired,  and  signal  advantages  obtained 
by  it  for  the  whole  Union,  it  was  second  to  no  enter- 
prise undertaken  during  that  struggle ;  I  might  add, 
second  to  no  undertaking  in  ancient  or  modern  war- 


•  ii 


iK' 


22 


ADDRESS. 


iP 


it 


n' 


fare.  The  whole  credit  of  this  conquest  belongs  to 
two  men — Gen.  George  Rogers  Clark,  and  Col. 
Francis  Vigo.  And  when  wo  consider  that  by  it 
the  whole  territory  now  covered  by  the  three  great 
States  of  Indiana,  Illinois,  and  Michigan,  was  added 
to  the  Union,  and  so  adnnitted  to  be  by  the  commis- 
sioners on  the  part  of  Great  Britain,  at  the  prelim- 
inaries for  the  settlement  of  the  treaty  of  peace  in 
1783;  and  but  for  this  very  conquest  the  boundaries 
of  our  territories  west,  would  have  been  thb  Ohio, 
instead  of  the  Mississippi,  and  so  acknowledged 
and  admitted  both  by  our  own,  and  the  British 
commissioners  at  that  conference — a  territory  em- 
bracing, as  I  have  before  remarked,  upwards  of  iwd 
million  of  people,  the  human  mind  is  lost  in  the 
contemplation  of  its  eifects ;  and  we  can  but  wonder 
that  a  force  of  one  hundred  and  seventy  men,  the 
whole  number  of  Clark's  troops,  should,  by  this  sin- 
gle action,  have  produced  such  important  results. 
That  they  did  so,  all  history  attests ;  that  they  did 
so,  our  very  assembly  here  this  day  proves. 

"It  was  on  the  10th  day  of  December,  1777,  that 
Col.  Clark  opened  the  plan  of  the  Illinois  campaign, 
against  the  British  interests  in  this  quarter,  to  the 
celebrated  Patrick  Henry,  then  Governor  of  Vir- 
ginia." It  is  unnecessary  now  to  go  into  all  the 
(causes  which  led  to  the  adoption  of  a  western 
campaign  as  suggested  by  General,  then  Col.  Clarke 
Suffice  it  to  say,  that  it  was  not  without  doubt  as  to 
its  success,  and  great  difficulty  in  preparing  the 
material  for  the  enterprise,  that  it  was  undertaken. 
Virginia  herself,  from  whom  the  aid  was  demanded, 


^p 


ADDRESS. 


23 


and  assistance  in  men  and  money  was  expected, 
was  in  the  most  critical  period  of  her  revolutionary 
struggle;  her  finances  exhausted,  her  sons  drawn 
from  the  cultivation  of  the  soil,  and  from  all  the 
avocations  of  civil  life — for  the  most  part  in  the 
field,  battling  for  freedom — it  is  not  to  be  wondered 
at,  "that  the  counsels  which  advised  so  distant  an 
expedition  should  have  been  listened  to  with  doubt, 
and  adopted  with  caution."  Fortunately  for  the 
country  they  were  not  unheeded.  Gov.  Henry,  en- 
couraged by  the  advice  of  some  of  Virginia's  most 
prominent  and  patriotic  sons,  yielded  to  the  solicit- 
ations of  Clark;  and,  on  the  2d  of  Januaiy,  1778, 
he  received  two  sets  of  instructions — "one  public, 
directing  him  to  proceed  to  Kentucky  for  its  de- 
fence; the  other,  secret,  ordering  an  attack  on  the 
British  Post  at  Kaskaskia," — and  with  the  instruc- 
tions, twelve  hundred  pounds  in  depreciated  currency^ 
as  his  military  chest  for  conquering  an  empire.  On 
the  24th  of  June,  1778,  and  during  a  total  eclipse 
of  the  sun — a  sad  foreboding,  as  the  party  thought  ? 
of  their  future  success,  but  which  ultimately  proved 
"the  sun  of  Austcrlitz," — this  patriotic  band  of  four 
companies,  under  the  command  of  Caj^tains  Montr 
gomery.  Helm,  Bowman,  and  Harrod,  crossed  the 
falls  of  the  Ohio,  on  their  apparently  "forlorn  ex- 
pedition." 

It  is  a  well  known  matter  of  history,  "that  during 
the  commencement  of  our  revolutionary  struggle, 
the  heart-rending  scenes  and  wide-spread  ravagea 
of  our  Indian  foes  on  the  Western  frontier,  were 
caused  principally  by  the  ammunition,  arms,  and 


!' 


M 


k 


abdhess. 


>^iii 


clothing  supplied  at  the  British  military  stations  of 
Detroit,  Vinccnnes,  and  Kaskaskia,  then  garrisoned 
by  British  troops."  To  divert  the  attention  of  the 
enemy  from  our  own  frontier,  and  to  occupy  them 
in  the  defence  of  their  own  positions,  it  was  neces- 
sary to  carry  war  into  their  own  dominions.  The 
active  mind  of  Clark  saw  that,  by  doing  this,  a 
diversion  would  be  created  in  our  favor.  "  His  first 
intention  was  to  march  directly  to  Vincennes ;  but 
on  revicAving  his  troops,  the  paucity  of  the  number, 
and  the  want  of  all  the  material  necessary  for  the 
attack  of  a  fortified  town,  induced  him  to  abandon 
this  object,  and  to  prosecute  the  one  originally  con- 
templated by  his  instructions — ^the  capture  of  Kas- 
kaskia." It  forms  no  part  of  the  plan  of  this 
address  to  enter  into  the  details  of  that  expedition. 
Suffice  it  to  say,  that  it  was  eminently  successful, 
without  the  loss  of  a  single  man ;  and  that,  on  the 
4th  of  July,  1778,  Kaskaskia  yielded  to  the  suprem- 
acy of  American  enterprise  and  valor,  and  with 
Cahokia,  surrendered  to  the  American  arms. 

It  must  be  recollected,  that  previous  to  this  event, 
ft  treaty  of  peace  had  been  concluded  between 
France  and  the  United  States.  The  intelligence  of 
it  had  been  communicated  to  Clark,  on  his  descent 
down  the  Ohio.  The  effect  of  this  treat)/  had  a  won- 
derful influence  upon  the  subsequent  events  of  the 
campaign.  Among  the  individuals  at  Kaskaskia, 
at  the  time  of  its  capture,  was  M.  Gibault,*  the  Ro- 
man Catholic  priest,  at  Vincennes.  The  capture  of 
Vincennes,  as  Clark  himself  admits,  "had  never 


*S«e  Note  C. 


ADDRESS. 


25 


been  out  of  his  mind  from  the  first  moment  he  un- 
dertook the  expedition  westward."  His  success  at 
Kaskaskia  served  only  to  inspire  a  wish  for  the 
accomplishment  of  the  long  desired  achievement. 
Affairs  being  regulated  at  Kaskaskia,  he  sent  for 
M.  Gibault,  and  explained  to  him  his  views.  This 
patriotic  individual,  who  subsequently  received  the 
])ublic  thanks  of  Virginia  for  his  services,  and  whose 
attachment  for  the  American  cause  is  well  known, 
readily  and  cheerfully  sustained  him.  Dispatched 
by  Clark,  to  sound  the  French  population  here,  over 
whom  he  had  great  influence,  he,  on  his  arrival, 
assembled  them  in  the  church,  explained  the  object 
of  his  mission,  the  alliance  with  France,  and  the 
negotiations  with  which  he  was  entrusted.  He  had 
no  sooner  finished,  than  the  population  m  manse 
took  the  oath  of  allegiance  to  the  Commonwealth  of 
Virginia.  A  commandant  was  elected,  and  the 
American  flag  displayed  over  the  fort — much  to  the 
astonishment  of  their  Indian  neigh))ors,  who  for  the 
first  time  saw  the  glorious  stars  and  stripes,  instead 
of  the  Cross  of  St.  George,  unfurled  to  that  breeze 
in  which  it  has  so  often  since  waved  triumphantly, 
'  M.  Gibault,  returned  to  Kaskaskia  with  the  grat- 
ifying intelligence  of  the  perfect  success  of  his  mis- 
sion; not  less,  it  may  be  presumed,  to  the  astonish- 
ment of  Clark,  than  to  his  gratification.  Cai)tain 
Helm  was  appointed  commandant  "and  Agent  for 
the  Indian  affairs  in  the  department  of  the  Wa- 
bash," and  repaired  to  the  "Post,"  at  which  it  was 
the  intention  of  Clark  to  place  a  strong  garrison,  on 
the  arrival  of  the  reinforcements  expected  from 


■  :l 


20 


ADDRU8. 


■M 


i,  li' 

'  I; 


l! 


i 


Virginia.  These  rcinforpoments  never  arrived ;  and 
A  new  and  important  leaf  in  the  chapter  of  our  his- 
tory is  about  to  be  unfolded,  and  another  individual, 
no  less  celebrated,  and  to  u^  equally  dear  with  the 
conqueror,  and  whose  name  will  go  down  to  pos- 
terity with  his,  in  the  history  of  our  place,  and,  on 
the  same  bright  page  which  records  the  valor  of  the 
oommander,  is  to  bo  introduced  to  your  notice. 

It  was  on  the  first  of  August,  1778,  that  M« 
(ribault  returned  to  Kaskaskia  with  the  intelli- 
gence of  the  submission  of  the  French  inhabitants 
here,  to  the  American  government,  and  of  the  cir- 
cumstances above  detailed.  It  was  well  known 
that  Governor  Abbot,  the  commander  here,  at  the 
time  of  Clark's  expedition  to  the  Illinois,  had  gone 
to  Detroit  on  business;  and  that  no  great  time 
would  elapse  before  reinforcements  would  be  sent 
from  that  post  to  Vincennes.  Clark  could  not,  even 
had  he  desired  it,  detailed  any  of  his  own  command 
to  garrison  the  place.  Helm  was  here,  a  com- 
mandant in  name  simply,  without  a  single  solditT 
under  his  command.  From  the  first  of  August, 
when  M.  Gibault  returned,  until  the  29th  of  Jan- 
uary, 1779,  Clark  had  not  received  a  single  commu- 
nication from  Vincennes.  How  he  obtained  it,  and 
the  consequences  resulting  from  the  communicar 
tion,  it  is  now  my  purpose  briefly  to  unfold. 

Francis  Vigo,  better  known  to  us  under  the  mil- 
itary title  of  Col.  Francis  Vigo,  a  rank  which  he 
held  during  the  terintorial  government,  was  born 
in  Mondovi,  in  the  kingdom  of  Sardinia,  in  the  year 
1747.    He  left  his  parents  and  guardians  at  a  very 


mi 


AODREU. 


27 


^rly  age,  and  enlisted  in  a  Spanish  regiment  as  u 
private  soldier.  The  regiment  was  ordered  to  the 
Havana,  and  a  detachment  of  it  subsequently  to 
Xew  Orleans,  then  a  Spanish  post,  and  which  de- 
tachment Col.  Vigo  accompanied.  At  what  time, 
and  under  what  circumstances  he  left  the  army,  i» 
not  actually  known.  It  is  believed,  that  his  atten- 
tion to  his  duties,  his  natural  intelligence,  and  high- 
minded  and  honorable  deportment,  gained  him  the 
esteem  and  contidence  of  his  commander;  and  that 
he  received  his  discharge  without  any  application 
on  his  own  part.  We  find  that  shortly  after  his 
discharge — and  probably  by  the  aid  of  the  same 
j)owerful  friend  who  had  obtained  it — he  was  su|)- 
plied  with  goods,  and  engaged  in  the  Indian  trade 
on  the  Arkansas  and  its  tributaries;  and  that  a 
few  years  after,  he  made  a  settlement  at  St.  Louis, 
also  a  Spanish  post,  and  was  connected  in  the  clos- 
est relations  of  friendship  an<l  business  with  the 
(jrovernor  of  Upper  Louisiana,  then  residing  at  the 
same  place,  and  whose  confidence  and  atfoction  he 
enjoyed  in  the  highest  degree.  That  a  private  sol- 
dier, a  man  without  education-^for  he  could  simply 
write  his  name — should  in  a  few  years,  thus  be 
enabled  to  make  his  way  in  the  world,  and,  in  so 
short  a  period,  become  so  extensively  engaged  in 
business,  so  highly  respected  and  beloved,  as  we 
know  him  to  have  been  at  the  period  to  which  I 
allude,  as  well  as  to  the  day  of  his  death,  shows 
him  to  have  thus  early  been  possessed  of  a  goodness 
of  heart,  a  purity  of  mind,  a  high,  honorable,  and 
chivalric  bearing;  qualities  which  grew  with  hi» 


^ 


ADDRESS. 


f 'I 


f 


u 


growth  and  strengthened  with  his  strength,  until 
the  very  close  of  his  long  and  useful  life.  At  the 
time  of  Clark's  capture  of  Kaskaskia,  Col.  Vigo  was 
a  resident  of  St.  Louis,  and  extensively  engaged  un- 
der the  patronage  of  the  Governor  in  the  Indian 
trade  up  the  Missouri.  A  Spaniard  by  birth  and 
.'illegiance,  he  was  under  no  obligation  to  assist  us. 
Spain  was  then  at  peace  with  Great  Britain,  and 
any  interference  on  the  part  of  her  citizens  was  a 
breach  of  neutrality,  and  subjected  an  individual, 
especially  of  the  high  character  and  standing  of  Col. 
Vigo,  to  all  the  contumely,  loss,  and  vengeance, 
which  British  power  on  this  side  of  the  Mississippi 
could  inilict.  But  Col.  Vigo  did  not  falter.  With 
an  innate  love  of  liuorty,  an  attachment  to  repub? 
lican  princii)les,  piid  an  ardent  sympathy  for  an 
oppressed  people  struggling  for  their  rights,  he 
overlooked  all  personal  consequences ;  and  as  soon 
as  he  learnt  of  Clark's  arrival  at  Kaskaskia,  he 
crossed  the  line — went  there  and  tendered  him  his 
means,  and  his  influence,  both  of  which  were  joy- 
fully accepted.  Knowing  Col.  Vigo's  influence  with 
the  ancient  inhabitants  of  the  country,  and  desirous 
of  obtaining  some  information  from  Vincennes,  from 
which  he  had  not  heard  for  several  months,  Col, 
(^lark,  in  a  conference  with  Col.  Vigo,  proposcv' 
that  he  should  come  and  learn  the  actual  state  of 
aifairs  at  the  Post.  Col.  Vigo  did  not  hesitate  a 
moment  in  obeying  this  command.  With  a  single 
servant  he  proceeded  on  his  journey;  and  when  on 
the  river  Embarrass,  he  was  seized  by  a  party  of 
Indians,  plundered  of  every  thing  he  possessed,  and 


AODBESS. 


2& 


brought  a  prisoner  before  Hamilton,  then  in  posses- 
sion of  tlic  place,  which,  with  his  troops,  he  had  a 
short  time  before  captured,  holding  Capt.  Helm  a 
prisoner  of  war.  Being  a  Spanish  subject,  and  con- 
se(|uently  a  mm-combatant.  Governor  Hantiltonv 
although  he  strongly  suspect;  I  the  motives  of  his 
visit,  dared  not  confine  him ;  he  accordingly  admit- 
ted him  to  his  parole,  on  the  single  condition,  that 
ho  should  daily  report  himself  at  the  Fort.  On  his 
frequent  visits  there,  his  acute  and  discerning  mind,, 
aided  by  the  most  povverfid  memory  I  ever  knew, 
enabled  him  early  to  ascertain  the  state  of  the  gar- 
rison, it«  numerical  force,  means  of  defence,  position,, 
in  line  all  the  matter  necessary  to  make  an  accurate 
report,  as  soon  as  liberated..  Hauiilton,  in  the  meaii 
time,  embarrassed  by  his  detentit)U,  besieged  l)y  tluv 
French  inhabitants  of  the  town,  by  whom  he  was 
beloved,  for  his  release;  and  linally  threatened  ])y 
tiiem,  that  unless  released,  they  would  refuse  alf 
su[)plies>  to  the  garrison,  yieldeil,  on  condition  that 
C.0I.  Vigo  would  sign  an  article  "not  to  do  any  act 
tluring  the  war  injurious  to  th(^  British  interests." 
This  he  absolutely  and  positively  refused.  The 
matter  was  finally  adjusted,  on  an  agrcen»ent  en- 
tered into  on  the  part  t>f  CoL  Vigo,  "not  to  do 
any  thing  injurious  to  the  British  inten;sts  on  kin 
way  to  St.  Louis."  The  agreement  was  signed,  and 
til©  next  day  he  departed  in  a  pirogue  down  the 
Wabash  and  the  Ohio,  and  uj)  the  Mississippi  with 
two  voyagers  accompanying  him.  Col.  Vigo  faith- 
fully and  religiously  kept  the  very  lettefi'  of  his  bond. 
Qu  hi8  wan  ^  ^^'-  ^^^  ^^  ^^  nothing  injurious  in 


i>li»i:J 


30 


ADORB03. 


I: 

if,: 


if': 


i  1" 


11 

m 


♦ho  slightest  degree  to  British  interests.  But  he 
had  no  sooner  set  his  foot  ok^  shore  there,  and  chang- 
<xi  his  dress,  than  in  the  same  piroffue  he  hastened 
to  Kasjikaskiji,  and  gave  the  information,  and  ar- 
ranged the  plan,  through  the  means  of  which,  and 
by  which  alone,  Clark  was  enabled  to  succeed,  and 
did  succeed,  in  surprising  Hamilton,  and  making 
<siptives  of  him  and  his  garrison.  Spirit  of  the 
illustrious  dead,  let  others  judge  of  this  matter  as 
they  may,  we  who  have  lived  to  see  the  immense 
advantages  of  that  conquest  to  our  beloved  country 
— so  little  known,  and  so  little  appreciated  when 
made — will  do  you  justice,  and  we  will  also  teach 
our  children,  and  our  children's  children,  who  are 
to  occupy  our  places  when  we  are  gone,  to  read  and 
remember,  among  the  earliest  lessons  of  the  history 
of  that  portion  of  the  country  which  is  to  be  alat> 
their  abiding  place — our  own  lovely  valley — ^that  its 
conquest  and  subsequent  attachment  to  the  Union, 
was  as  much  owing  to  the  councils  and  services  of 
Vigo,  as  to  the  bravery  and  enterprise  of  Clark. 

It  was  on  the  5th  of  February,  1779,  that  a  Spar- 
tan band  of  one  hundred  and  seventy  men,  headed 
by  as  gallant  a  leader  as  ever  led  men  to  battle, 
crossed  the  Kaskaskia  river,  on  their  march  to  this 
place.  The  incidents  of  this  campaign,  their  perils, 
their  sufferings,  their  constancy,  their  courage,  their 
success,  would  be  incredible,  were  they  not  matters 
of  history.  In  my  opinion,  as  I  have  before  re- 
marked, no  campaign  either  in  ancient  or  modern 
warfare — taking  into  consideration  the  force  em- 
ployed, the  want  of  material,  the  country  passed 


ADDRESS. 


31 


sed 


over,  the  destitution  of  even  the  necessaries  of  life, 
the  object  to  be  accomplished,  and  the  glorious  re- 
sults flowing  from  it,  is  to  be  compared  to  it.  And 
what  is  even  yet  more  astonishing,  is  the  foct,  that 
a  battle  which  decided  the  fate  of  an  empire,  a  cam- 
paign which  added  to  our  possessions  a  count rv 
more  than  equal  in  extent  to  the  United  kingdoms 
of  Great  Britain,  Scotland,  and  Ireland,  has  scarcely 
even  a  page  of  our  revolutionary  annals  devoted  to 
its  details,  or  making  even  honorable  mention  of 
the  brave  and  gallant  men  who  so  nobly  and  suc- 
cessfully conducted  it. 

Time  would  fail  me,  and  your  patience  would  l>e 
perhaps  exhausted,   were  I  to  follow  step  by  step, 
and  day  by  day,  this  small,  but  brave,  devoted,  par 
triotic  and  chivalrous  corps,  through  the  wilderness 
from  Kaskaskia  to  this  place.     It  would  be  but  a 
repetition  of  daily  suiferings,  of  fatigue,  of  peril,  of 
constancy,  of  perseverance,  and  of  hope.     Day  after 
day,  without  provisions,  wading  in  ice  and  water  to 
their  necks,  through  the  over-flowed  bottoms  of  the 
Wabash,  carrying  their  rifles  above  their  heads, 
their  gallant  chief  taking  the  lead,  foremost  in  difli- 
culty  and  in  danger,  did  these  patriotic  soldiers 
struggle  on,  taint,  weary,  cold  and  starving,  until 
the  prize  was  in  view,  and  their  object  was  accom- 
plished, f  Look  around  you,  my  friends,  and  see  what 
this  portion  of  our  beloved  Union  is  now!    Look 
ahead,  and  tell  me,  if  you  can,  what  it  is  to  be  a 
half  century  hence,  supposing  the  improvements  to 
progress  as  they  have  the  last  twenty  years — and 
the  advancement  will  bo  geometrical — and  then  go 


ivi 


ADDRESS. 


I 


;ir.f 

I 


l)ack  with  me  sixty  years  since,  this  very  day,  and 
learn  from  an  actor  in  the  scene— one  holding  com- 
mand, and  from  whose  unpublished  journal  I  make 
tlie  extract,  what  the  country  was,  and  the  difficul- 
ties and  dangers,  the  perils  and  sufferings  those 
endured  for  you,  and  yours;  and  should  you,  or 
those  who  are  to  come  after  you,  to  the  latest  gen- 
eration forget  them,  "may  your  right  hands  forget 
their  cunning." 

"February  22nd,  1779.  Col.  Clark*  encouraged 
his  men,  which  gave  them  great  spirits.  Marched 
oTi  in  the  water;  tliose  that  were  weak  and  famished 
from  so  much  fatigue,  went  in  the  canoes.  We 
came  three  miles  farther  to  some  sugar  camps,  where 
we  stayed  all  night.  Heard  the  evening  and  morn- 
ing guns  at  the  Fort.  No  provisions  yet.  The 
Lord  help  us. 

"23d.  Set  off  to  cross  a  plain  called  Horse  Shoe 
Plain,  about  four  miles  long,  all  covered  with  water 

hreast  high.  Here  we  expected  some  of  our  brave 
jnen  must  certainly  perish,  the  water  having  frozo: 


"Without  food,  tHMiumbcd  with  c«ld,  up  to  their  wuLits  iu  wutt'r 
eovered  with  broken  ice,  tho  cnMi  coraposing  Clark's  tvoops  at  one 
time  mutinied,  refusing  to  march.  All  the  persuasions  of  Clark  bad 
no  effect  upon  the  half  starved  and  half  frozen  soldiers.  In  one  of 
the  companies  was  a  small  boy  wha  acted  aa  drummer.  In  the  samw 
company  was  a  sergeaut,  standing  six  feet  two  inches  ia  his  stockings, 
stout,  athletic,  and  devoted  to  Clurk.  Finding  that  his  eloquence 
had  no  effect  upon  the  men,  in  persuading  them  to  continue  their  linv 
of  march,  Clark  mounted  the  little  drammer  on  the  shoulders  of  tho 
stalwart  sergeant,  and  gave  orders  to  him  to  plunge  into  the  half 
fri^zen  water.  He  did  so,  the  little  drammer  beating  the  charge  front 
liisMofty  perch,  while  Clark,  with  sword  in  hand,  followed  them,  giv- 
ing the  command  as  he  threw  asJde  tho  floating  ice — "  FORWARD !  '* 
Klated  and  amused  with  the  scene,  the  men  promptly  obeyed,  holdine 
their  rifles  above  their  heads,  and  in  spite  of  all  ob«tiM)leSt  veaehed 
the  high  land  beyond  them,  safely. 


1 


ADDOISS. 


as 


,  <»• 


m  the  night,  and  so  long  fasting.  Having  no  other 
resource  but  wading  this  lake  of  frozen  water^  we 
plunged  in  with  courage,  Col.  Clark  beingi  first.* 
We  took  care  to  have  boats  by,  to  take  those  who 
were  weak  and  benumbed  with  the  cold  into  them. 
Never  were  men  so  animated  with  the  thought  of 
avenging  the  ravages  done  to  their  back  settle- 
ments, as  this  small  army  was.  About  one  o'clock 
we  came  in  sight  of  the  town.  We  halted  on  a 
amall  iiill  of  dry  land,  cdled  ."Warren's  Island," 
where  we  took  a  prisoner  hunting  ducks,  who  in- 
formed us  that  no  person  suspected  our  eoming  in 
tliat  season  of  the  year.  CoL  Clark  wrote  a  letter 
by  him  to  the  inhabitants,  as  follows : 
"  To  the  inhabitants  of  Post  Vincennes — 

"Gentlemen:  Being  now  within  two  miles  of 
your  village  with  my  army,  determined  to  take 
your  Fort  this  nighty  and  not  being  willing  to  sur- 
j)rize  you,  I  take  this  method  of  requesting  such  of 
you  as  are  true  citizens,  and  willing  to  enjoy  the 
liberty  I  bring  you,  to  remain  still  in  your  houses. 
And  those,  if  anv  there  are.  that  are  friends  to  the 
King,  will  instantly  repair  to  the  Fort,  and  join  the 
Hair-Buyer  General,  and  fight  like  men.  And 
if  any  such  as  do  not  go  to  the  Fort  shall  be  discov- 
ered afterwards,  they  may  depend  on  severe  pun- 
ishment. On  the  contrary,  those  who  are  true 
friends  to  liberty,  will  b©  well  treated. 

"G.  R.  CLARK." 

In  order  to  gjve  effect  to  this  letter,  by  having  it 
communicated  to  the  French  inhabitants,  the  army 

t.  •SmMoUC. 


31 


ADDRESS. 


'I 

■  '11/ 


m 


encamped  until  about  sun  down,  when  they  com* 
menced  their  march,  wading  in  water  breast  high, 
to  the  rising  ground  on  which  the  town  is  situated^ 
One  poi  <  1'"  ^  of  the  army  marched  directly  up  along 
where  the  ee  is  now  raised,  and  came  in  by  the 
steam-mill ;  while  another  party  under  Lieut.  Brad- 
ley, deployed  from  the  main  body,  and  came  in  by 
the  present  Princeton  road.  An  entrenchment  waa 
thrown  up  in  front  of  the  Fort,  and  the  battle  com- 
menced from  the  British  side  by  the  discharge, 
though  without  effect,  of  their  cannon,  and  the  re- 
turn on  our  side  of  rifle  shot,  the  only  arms  which 
the  Americans  possessed.  On  the  morning  of  the 
24th,  about  9  o'clock,  Col.  Clark  sent  in  a  flag  of 
truce,  with  a  letter  to  the  British  commander, 
during  which  time  there  was  a  cessation  of  hostili- 
ties, and  the  men  were  provided  with  a  breaktast, 
the  Jirst  meal  which  they  had  had  since  the  18^/^  ,s7.r 
days  before.  The  letter  of  Clark  is  so  characteristic 
of  the  man,  so  laconic,  and,  under  such  trying  cir- 
cumstances, shows  so  much  tact,  self-possession  and 
tirmness,  that  I  will  read  it: 

"Sir:  In  order  to  save  yourself  from  the  impend- 
itig  storm  that  now  threaten**  you,  I  order  you 
immediately  to  surrender  yourself,  with  all  your 
t!farrison,  stores,  &c.,  <&c.;  tor  if  I  am  obliged  to 
storm,  you  may  depend  on  sucli  treatment  as  is 
justly  due  a  murderer.  Beware  of  destroying  stores 
of  any  kind,  or  any  papers  or  letters  that  are  in 
your  possession,  or  hurting  one  house  in  town,  for 
by  Heavens,  if  you  do,  there  shall  be  no  mercy 
shown  you.  "0.  R.  CLARK.  " 

"To  Gov.  Hamilton." 


ADDRESS. 


35 


Since  the  days  of  Charles  the  Xllth,  of  Sweden, 
1  doubt  whether  ever  such  a  cartel,  under  such  cir- 
cumstances was  sent  to  an  antagonist.  Prudence, 
as  Clai'k  well  knew,  would  indeed  be  a  "rascally 
virtue"  on  such  an  occasion.  Hemmed  in  on  one 
side  by  ice  and  water,  with  a  fortified  post  bristling 
with  artillery  in  front,  with  one  hundred  and  sev- 
enty soldiers — part  Americans,  part  Creoles,  with* 
out  food,  worn  out,  and  armed  only  with  rifles,  it 
was,  as  Clark  knew,  only  by  acting  the  victor  in- 
stead of  the  vanquished,  (as  was  the  real  state  of 
tlie  case,  if  Hamilton  had  only  known  the  fact)  that 
he  could  hope  to  succeed.  He  acted  wisely  and  he 
acted  bravely;  any  other  course,  and  he  would  have 
been  a  prisoner  instead  of  a  conqueror.  The  very 
reply  of  Hamilton  to  this  singular  epistle  shows  he 
was  already  quailing: 

"Gov.  Hamilton  begs  leave  to  acquaint  Col. 
('lark,  that  he  and  his  garrison  are  not  disposed  to 
//e  awed  into  any  action  unworthy  British  subjects." 

The  battle  was  renewed ;  the  skill  of  our  western 
riflemen,  celebrated  even  in  our  days,  wounded  sev- 
eral of  the  men  ih  the  Fort  through  the  port-hcles, 
the  only  place  where  a  shot  could  be  made  eflective. 
C'lark,  w^ith  the  skill  of  a.  practiced  commander, 
must  have  seen  and  felt  from  the  answer  returned 
to  his  communication,  that  another  message  would 
soon  be  delivered  to  him  from  the  same  quarter, 
and  he  was  not  long  in  receiving  \L  The  flag  of 
truce  brought  him  as  follows: 

"Gov.  Hamilton  i)ropose3  to  Col.  Clark  a  truce 
for  three  days,  during  which  time  he  promises  that 


tl 


36 


address; 


I  - 


there  shall  be  no  defensive  work  carried  on  in  the- 
garrison,  on  condition  that  Col.  Clark  will  observe 
on  his  part  a  like  cessation  of  offensive  work ;  that 
is,  he  wishes  to  confer  with  Col.  Clark,  as  soon  a» 
can  be,  and  promises  that  whatever  may  pass  be- 
tween them  two,  and  another  person  mutually- 
agreed  on  to  be  present,  shall  remain  secret  until 
matters  be  finished;  as  he  wishes,  that  wliatever  the- 
result  of  the  conferon<^  may  be,  it  may  tend  to  the 
honor  and  credit  of  each  party.  If  Col.  Clark  makes 
a  difficulty  of  coming  into  the  Fort,  Lieut.  Gov.. 
Hamilton  will  speak  with  him  by  the  gate. 

24th  Feb'y,  '79.        HENRY  HAMILTON." 

If  Gov.  Hamilton  had  known  tlie  man  he  was. 
dealing  with,  he  would  have  found,  ere  this,  that  be 
would  have  made  light  of  any  difficulties  "in  coming 
into  the  Fort; "  and  if  not  already  convinced  of  the 
daring  of  the  toe  he  was  contending  with,  one  would, 
have  supposed  Clark's  answer  would  have  set  him 
right: 

"Col.  Clark's  compliments  to  Gov.  Hamilton,  and' 
begs  leave  to  say,  that  he  Avill  not  agree  to  any 
terms,  other  than  Mr.  Hamilton  swh'endering  liirmelf 
and  garrison  prisoners  at  discretion. 

"If  Mr.  Hamilton  wants  to  talk  with  Col.  Clark, 
he  will  meet  him  at  the  church  with  Capt.  Helm  J' 

Laconic  enough,  surely,  and  easily  understood ; 
and  so  it  was.  For  in  less  than  one  hour  after* 
wards,  Clark  dictated  himself  the  following  Vinxa^ 
which  were  accepted,  a  meeting  having  taiien  plac* 
at  the  church: 

^Ist.  Lieut.  Got.  Hamilton  agrees  to  deliver 


i:|.-:i 


ADDRESS. 


ST 


to  Col,  €lark,  *^Fart  Sackville"  as  it  is  at  present, 
with  all  its  stores,  &c. 

2d.  The  garrison  are  to  deliver  themselves  as 
l^risoners  of  war,  and  march  out  with  their  arms  and 
««coutrcments. 

3d.  The  garrison  to  be  delivered  up  to-morrow  at 
ten  o'clock. 

4th.  Three  days  time  to  be  allowed  the  garri- 
son to  settle  their  accounts  with  the  inhabitants  and 
traders. 

6th.  The  officers  of  the  garrison  to  be  allowed 
their  necessary  baggage.,  &c. 

Signed  at  Post  St.  Vincents,  this  24th  of  Feb- 
ruary, 1779.     Agreed  for  the  following  reasons: 

1st.  The  remoteness  from  succor.     2d.  The  state 

and  quantity  of  provisions.     3d.  The  unammiff/  of 

the  officers  and  men  in  its  expediency.     4th.  The 

honorable  terms  nllowed;  and  lastly,  the  conlidenee 

in  a  generous  enemy. 

HENRY  HAMILTON, 

Lieut.  Gov.  and  Superinfendent. 

It  was  on  the  twenty-fifth  day  of  February,  1779, 
about  ten  o'clock  in  the  forenoon,  that  the  British 
troops  marched  out,  and  the  Americans  entered 
that  Fort,  acquired  with  tlie  tact,  skill,  judgment, 
bravery,  peril,  and  suffi3ring,  which  I  have  so  briefly 
attempted  to  describe.  The  British  ensign  was 
hauled  down,  and  the  American  flag  waved  above 
its  ramparts ;  that  flag, 

"  Within  whose  folds  . 
Are  wrapped,  the  trvjasurea  of  our  hearts, 
Where  e'er  its  waving  sheet  is  fanned, 
,     «        By  hreezes  of  the  sea,  or  land."  ] 


\  t| 


I 


r. 


38 


ADDRESS. 


•  •i; 


I: 


Time  would  not  permit  me,  my  friends,  to  dwell 
on  the  important  results  growing  out  of  this  con- 
quest to  our  common  country.  A  volume  would  he 
required  to  delineate  fully,  all  the  advantages  which 
have  been  derived  from  it  to  that  Union,  a  portion 
of  which  we  now  constitute.  Calculate,  if  you  can, 
the  revenue  which  the  government  already  has, 
and  will  continue  to  derive  from  its  public  domahi 
within  the  territory  thus  acquired.  Bounded  by 
tlie  Lakes  and  the  Miami  on  one  side,  and  the  Ohio 
and  the  Mississippi  on  the  other,  embracing  thrw 
large  States,  witli  a  poi)ulation  now  of  upwards  of 
two  millions,  with  a  representation  of  six  Senators 
in  one  branch  of  our  National  Councils,  and  eleven 
llepresentatives  in  the  other;  and  which,  within  the 
last  half  century,  was  represented  by  a  single  Del- 
egate, but,  in  the  next  half  century  to  come,  will 
have  fifty  Representatives ;  mild  in  its  climate,  rich 
in  its  soil,  yielding  in  the  abundance,  variety,  and 
excellence  of  its  products,  perhaps,  a  greater  quan- 
tity than  the  same  space  of  territory  in  the  civilized 
world ;  inhabited,  and  to  be  inhabited  by  a  race  of 
industrious,  hard  working,  intelligent,  high-minded, 
and  patriotic  people,  attached  to  the  institutions  of 
their  country;  lovers  of  order,  liberty  and  law; 
republicans  in  precepts  and  in  practice;  trained 
from  their  earliest  infancy  to  revere  and  to  ven- 
erate, to  love  knd  to  idolize  the  Constitution  adopted 
by  their  fathers,  for  the  government  of  themselves 
and  their  posterity;— calculate,  if  yoi*  can)  the  in- 
crease within  this  territory,  of  just  such  a  popular 
tion  as  I  have  described,  "within  sixty  years  to  come 


ADDRESS. 


39 


—-its  wealth,  its  influence,  its  power,  its  improve- 
ments, morally  and  socially — and  when  your  minds 
are  wearied  in  the  immensity  of  the  speculation, 
ask  yourselves  to  whom  all  these  blessings  are  to 
he  attributed;  and  whether  national  gratitude,  in 
the  fullness  of  national  wealth  and  prosperity,  can 
find  treasures  enough  to  repay  those  gallant  men, 
and  those  who  aided  them  in  their  glorious  struggle, 
which  I  have  attempted  feebly  to  describe.  But  T 
am  warned  by  the  time  which  I  have  already  occu- 
pied, that  this  address  should  close — not  that  tin; 
subject  is  exhausted,  or  can  be.  No  other,  that  I 
can  conceive  of,  presents  a  finer  field  for  the  his- 
torian; and  the  few  incidents  whi(;h  have  been 
gathered  here  and  there,  "few  and  far  between,"  in 
relation  to  our  early  history,  but  stimulates  tx»  fur- 
ther enquiry.  A  brief  notice  of  the  principal  events 
which  have  occurred  since  the  capture  by  Gen. 
Clark,  and  I  shall  close  this  long,  and,  I  fear  from 
the  nature  of  the  subject,  to  you  on  this  occasion, 
uninteresting  address. 

The  first  object  to  be  obtained,  after  the  fall  of 
the  Post,  and  the  consequent  change  resulting  from 
it,  was  the  establishment  of  a  civil  government. 
Col.  Clark  returned  to  Kaskaskia,  leaving  Capt. 
Helm  in  command,  both  as  civil  and  military  com- 
mandant. The  result  of  the  campaign  was  made 
known  as  early  as  possible  to  the  government  of 
Virginia,  and  Col.  Todd  was  sent  out  as  the  gov- 
ernor and  commandant,  by  the  Executive  Council 
there.  How  long  he  remained,  I  do  not  know; 
probably  long  enough  to  form  a  provisional  govern* 


ii 


40 


ADDRESS. 


'!.  Jill: 


yi 


ment;  for  we  find  that  he  delegated  his  power  to 
M.  Legras,  as  Lieut.  Governor,  and  proceeded  to 
Kaskaskia.  I  have  had  no  opportunity  of  ascer- 
taining from  tlie  records  in  Virginia,  the  continua- 
tion or  names  of  the  Governors  after  Todd,  until 
the  transfer  of  the  territory  to  the  United  States, 
and  the  territorial  government  then  formed  under 
the  act  of  Congress, 

The  act  of  the  Virginia  Legislature,  transferring 
the  North- Western  Territory  to  the  United  States, 
])assed  on  the  20th  of  December,  1783,  and  the 
Delegates  on  the  part  of  Virginia,  Thomas  Jeffer- 
son, Samuel  Hardy,  Arthur  Lee,  and  James  Mad- 
ison, by  their  deed  of  cession,  conveyed,  on  tlie  first 
of  March,  1784,  "all  the  right,  title,  and  interest  of 
the  State  of  Virginia  in  the  country  acquired  north- 
west of  the  river  Ohio,  to  the  United  States."  And 
in  1787,  the  celebrated  ordinance  for  its  government 
was  passed  by  Congress;  an  ordinance,  which  in  its 
<?ffects,  at  least  to  us,  is  second  only  to  the  Consti- 
tution of  the  United  States.  An  ordinance,  which 
for  its  wise  and  wholesome  provisions — ^for  its  ben- 
eficial and  lasting  results — for  its  effects  not  only 
upon  those  who  were  to  be  the  immediate  subjects 
of  its  action,  but  for  the  blessings  and  prosperity 
which  it  will  carry  down  to  the  latest  poster it}^,  as 
long  as  we  remain  a  part  of  the  confederacy,  is  un- 
equalled by  any  legislative  act  ever  framed  here  or 
elsewhere.  The  author  of  this  act,  Nathan  Dane, 
of  Massachusetts,  for  it  alone,  if  he  had  done  noth- 
ing more,  deserves  a  place  in  our  affections,  and  in 
those  of  our  children  to  the  latest  generation.     The 


SI!!: 


ADDRESS. 


41 


act  provides,  "that  there  shall  bo  neither  slavery 
Tior  involuntary  servitude  within  the  territory  thus 
«edcd;"  creates  for  its  government,  a  Governor, 
-Secretary,  and  three  Judges;  the  Judges  with  the 
Governor  "to  make  laws  for  the  territory,  subject 
to  the  approval  of  Congress." 

The  laws  thus  made  were  selected  from  the  codes 
of  other  States,  and  applied  to  our  local  condition. 
They  were  few,  but  effective,  and  I  doul>t  much 
whether  all  subsequent  legislation  has  been  enabled 
to  frame  a  code  superior  to  that  of  the  old  territorial 
code. 

Gen.  Ilarmar,  then  commanding  in  tho  west,  was 
appointed  civil  Governor  and  superintendent  of  In- 
dian affairs.     He  was  here  in  1787,  and  I  believe, 
had  charge  of  our  civil  affairs  by  himself  or  deputy, 
until  1790,  when  Gen.  St.  Clair  was  a]>p()intcd,  and 
took  command.     He  came  here  in  1791,  and  went 
to  Kaskaskia,  from  whence  he  mado  a  long  report 
to  the  Sccrebxrv  of  State  in  relation  to  the  situation 
of  atlairs  hero.     Some  of  his  suggestions,  consider- 
ing our  present  advanced  state  of  imju-ovement,  are 
singular  enough.     "He  recommends  the  establish- 
ment of  a  printing  press  in  the  Western  Territory," 
and  gives  as  a  reason,  "that  as  tlie  laws  are  not 
binding  upon  the  people  until  a]>]iroved  by  Con- 
gress, there  is- no  way  of  giving  publicity  to  them, 
but  by  having  them  read  in  the  courts."     "  ]3ut  few 
people,"   says  he,  "understand  them,  and  even  the 
magistrates  who  carry  them  into  execution  are  per- 
fect strangers  to  them."     There  seems,  however,  to 
have  been  no  great  difficulty  after  all.     The  French 


I  ii 


ADDRIM.  f 


f 


complained  that  as  the  County  Court  was  comiwsed 
of  live  justices,  three  of  whom  were  Americans,  and 
but  two  Frenchmen,  whereas,  the  French  popula- 
tion was  treble  that  of  the  Americans,  and  there 
was  occasionally  a  little  leaning  by  their  Honors, 
on  the  American  side  of  the  bench,  towards  thei' 
countrymen;  and,  as  none  of  the  American  g(; 
epnors  assigned  to  keep  the  peace,  understood 
French,  there  was  some  difficulty  in  making  their 
(rause  fully  understood.  But  there  were  no  mobs, 
no  tarring  and  feathering  of  the  Judges,  no  pulling 
down  the  court-house.  If  the  law  was  not  well 
understood  by  these .  modern  Ivlansfields,  they  de- 
cided the  case,  ^'ex  eqito  ef  hono^''  according  to  equity 
and  good  conscience ;  and,  in  nine  cases  out  of  ten, 
no  doubt,  did  more  complete  justice  to  all  parties, 
than  with  a  row  of  "gentlemen  learned  in  the  law'' 
before  them,  to  (;onfuse  them  with  their  sophistry, 
or  perplex  them  with  a  quibble. 

In  1800,  Congress  ])assed  the  act  dividing  the  In- 
diana territory,  from  what  was  called  the  territory 
north-west  of  the  river  Ohio,  and  in  1801,  Gen. 
William  Henry  Harrison  was  appointed  Governor. 
There  were  at  this  period,  but  three  settlements  in 
the  whole  of  this  immense  territory.  The  one  at 
the  Falls,  called  "Clark^s  Grant,"  the  one  here,  and 
the  one  on  the  Mississippi  between  Cahokia  and 
Kaskaskia;  the  whole  population  of  which  did  not 
exceed  five  thousand  souls.  It  does  not  fall  within 
the  limits  which  I  had  assigned  to  this  discourse, 
to  trace  our  progress  farther.  The  history  of  the 
town,  the  seat  of  government  of  the  territory  until 


IDDRESS. 


43 


1816,  is  the  history  of  Indiana  during  that  period: 
but  the  facts  connected  with  it  are  familiar  to  you 
all.  Suffice  it  to  say,  that  our  progress  since  liax 
been  onward,  and  will  continue  to  be,  should  we  be 
true  to  ourselves  and  to  the  interests  committed  to 
our  hands. 

Members  of  the  "Vincennes  Historical  and  An- 
tiquarian Society"  and  citizens  of  Vincennes,  I  have 
finished  the  task  assigned  me  on  this  occasion — not 
by  any  means  in  the  manner  it  should  be,  or,  in- 
deed, in  the  manner  I  propose  to  finish  it  hereafter, 
if  I  have  leisure. 

I  have  thrown  together  a  few  of  the  leading  inci- 
dents of  our  history,  fitted  only  to  bo  woven  intc> 
an  address  on  the  present  occasion.  The  historinu 
of  our  ancient  borough,  must  gather  for  his  work 
more  materials  than  I  have  been  furnished  with,  to 
d(»  full  justice  to  his  subject.  He  should  search  tlie 
archives  of  other  countries — of  France,  of  England, 
the  colonial  records  of  Canada,  and  the  revolution- 
ary ones  of  Virginia;  in  fine,  devote  to  it  more  time, 
labor  and  research,  than  I  have  been  enabled  to  do, 
in  order  to  make  it  the  work  it  should  be.  The 
history  of  this  Post  has  been  the  history  of  the 
Western  country.  It  has  been  the  stake  for  which 
nations  have  played;  the  prize  for  which  princes 
have  contended — France,  England,  Virginia,  and 
the  States  have,  in  turn,  held  it  in  subjection — ^have 
governed  it  with  their  laws,  and  regulated  it  with 
their  codes,  civil  and  military.  Our  position  has 
been  an  important  one,  while  our  history,  but  little 
known,  has  been  more  full  of  stirring  incident,  of 


ii 


T 


lit 


111 


liii' 


"Mk 


ABDRESS. 


revolution,  of  bloodshed,  and  of  battle,  than  the  his- 
tory of  any  town  on  the  continent.  One  hundred 
and  thirty  years  since,  we  have  seen  it  occupied  a« 
A  post  in  the  wilderness,  forming  one  link  in  tJie 
<»hain  by  ^.hicli  France  attempted  to  hold  her  pos- 
Hi^ssions  in  this  country.  Fnty  years  after,  we  have 
seen  it  yielding  to  British  dominion  and  subject  to 
IJritish  power.  The  war  of  the  revolution,  and  the 
.severing  of  those  ties  which  bound  us  to  our  parent 
state,  wrested  it  also  from  its  conquerors.  The 
braver>  of  Clark,  and  that  of  his  compatriots  in 
arms,  formed  a  new  era  in  its  eventful  career.  It 
became  the  emporium  of  an  empire — the  seat  of 
government  of  a  territory  now  composing  three 
large  States.  The  history  of  our  tov/n,  since  the 
division  of  the  territory,  is  familiar  to  you  all.  But 
even  since  then  it  has  not  been  without  its  interest. 
The  same  stern  devotion  to  country,  the  same  love 
■of  liberty,  the  same  valor  and  patriotism,  has  been 
displayed  in  modern  times  by  its  citizens,  which 
gave  to  it  an  eclat  in  times  gone  by.  The  battle 
lield  of  Tijjpecanoe  was  fertilized  by  the  blood  of 
our  brethren.  And  more  daring,  brave,  and  chiv- 
alrous and  patriotic  men  never  gathered  under  their 
45ouutry's  banner,  than  rallied  in  its  defence  on  that 
eventful  field,  from  the  town  in  which  we  are  now 
assembled. 

And  am  I  right  in  saying,  thai  the  same  spirit 
«till  exists  here?  That  should  our  country  again 
make  its  call  "to  arms,"  that  here,  in  the  very  cra- 
dle of  liberty,  oil  this  side  of  the  AUeghanies,  the 
a[tirit  which  animated  Clark  and  his  followers,  has 


r^ 


i 


V 


ADDRESS. 


45 


%cen  handed  down  to  those  whom  I  address ;  and 
that  if  occasion  offered,  you  would  emulate  them  in 
the  privations  they  underwent,  the  sufferiuju's  they 
endured,  and  the  glory  they  acq,uired?  Am  1  riglit 
in  saying  this?  Fellow-citizens,  I  know  that  I  am 
ri()ht.  The  response  to  this  question  in  the  affirm- 
nti\  e,  is  answered  by  every  breath  that  heaves  from 
the  bosoms  of  those  who  he.  me.  It  is  ans\\ered 
by  the  silent  homage  which  you  yourselves,  on  this 
occasion,  have  paid  to  bravery  and  patriotism,  such 
as  [  have  delineated. 

Young  men  of  this  assembly,  this  feeling  must  bt^ 
kept  alive — you  must  neither  forget  your  origin  or 
your  destiny.  Many  of  us  will  soon  pass  off  the 
.*tage  of  action  \- — 

•'  The  eterrml  sm-go 
Of  time  and  tide  rolls  on,  nud  boars  ufar 
Our  bubbles;  and  the  old  burstr  new  emerge, 
Lash'd  from  the  foam  of  ages ;  while  the  grave* 
Of  empires  heavo  but  like  some  passing  waves.'*' 

G-ciueration  after  generation  will  succeed  us.  But 
kt  it  be  ever  impressed  on  your  minds,  and  the 
minds  of  those  who  come  after  you  to  the  latest 
posterity,  that  the  same  wisdom  and  valor  which 
Airijuired  the  "Post,"  must  always  sustain^,  jjrofeci 
and  defend  iL 


NOTES. 


I 


'M 


.1  .     :  I 
i :     ,1  i, 


'ii'-i 


^'oTi-:  A. 

Since  the  delivery  of  the  foregoing  address,  I  havo 
read  Article  I  J,  in  the  January  number  of  the  North 
American  Bevieu\  being  a  review  of  the  "Life  of 
Father  Marquette,"  by  Jared  Sparks — "Library  of 
American  Biography,  Vol.  10th."  The  original 
work  of  Mr.  Sparks,  the  "Life  of  Father  Mar- 
quette," contained  in  the  10th  volume  of  his  Amer- 
ican Biograi)hy,  I  have  never  seen. 

The  reviewer,  however,  in  the  article  referred  to, 
has,  I  conceive,  made  a  sad  mistake  in  relation  to 
the  "labor  of  love"  of  Father  Mermet  to  the  "Mas- 
coutens,"  a  tribe  of  Indians  now  extinct,  or,  what  is 
more  probable,  amalgamated  with  other  tribes,  and 
hence  have  lost  their  original  appellation.  The 
"  Mascoutens"  were  a  branch  of  the  "  Miamis" — vMe 
Mr.  Gallatin's  letter  published  in  the  "  Transactions 
of  the  American  Historical  and  Antiquarian  So- 
<^iety;"  they  never  lived  on  the  Ohio,  but  occupied 
the  country  along  Lake  Michigan,  and  down  the 
river  Wabash.  In  page  90  of  the  article  referred 
to,  the  reviewer  says:  "An  attempt  was  also  made 
to  build  up  a  settlement  at  the  point  where  the  Ohio 
and  the  Mississippi  join,  at  all  times,  a  favorite  spot 
among  the  planners  of  towns,  and  at  this  moment. 


NOTES. 


47 


if  we  mistake  not,  in  the  process  of  being  made  a 
town.    The  first  who  tried  this  spot  was  Sieur 
Juchereau,  a  Canadian  gentleman,  assisted  by  Father 
Mennetj  who  was  to  christianize  the  Mascmitens^  of 
whom  a  large  flock  was  soon  gathered."    The  re-  « 
viewer  then  goes  on  to  describe  ttie  modus  operandi 
by  which  Father  Meiimet  syllogistically  undertook  to 
confound  the  high  priests  of  this  deluded  band,  and 
gives  an  account  of  his  conference  with  their  prin- 
cipal medicine  men,  very  similar  to  that  given  in 
tlie  preceding  address.    Now  the  only  matter  in 
relation  to  which  we  differ  is  the  venue.    I  assert 
tliat  the  conference  and   "theological   discussion" 
took  place  on  the  banks  of  the  Wabash,  and  not 
*'at  the  confluence  of  the  Ohio  .uul  Mississippi;" 
and  that  it  happened  at  the   "Pust,"'  or  tiie   ''0 
Poste,^^  (contraction  for  the  French  word  "a?/,")  or, 
]>ar  excellence,  "The  Post  Vincennes."    And  1  be- 
lieve 1  prove  it  from  two  circumstances;  the  ont' 
referred  to,  to-wit:  the  "Mascoutens"  were  a  branrli 
of  the  Miamis,  and  inhabited  the  country  watered 
by  the  Wabash;  they  never  occupied  any  portion 
of  the  country  bordering  on  the  Ohio.     If  the  object 
of  the  good  Father  was,  (as  Father  Marest  states  it 
was — and  we  both  derive  our  account  of  the  mattei* 
from  him,)  the  conversion  of  the  "Mascoutens,"  he 
would  go  where  they  dwelt,  which  was  on  the  Wa- 
bash, and  not  on  the  Ohio;  and  if  Father  Mermot 
WHS  with  the  Sieur  Juchereau  at  the  mouth  of  th<3 
Ohio,  it  is  hardly  credible,  that  the  "Mascoutens" 
would  "gather  in  a  large  flock  from  a  distance  of 
upwards  of  two  hundred  miles,  from  the  banks  of 


w- 


4a 


NOTESv 


!i;r 


the  Wabash,  to  the  confluence  of  the  Ohio  and  the 
Mississippi,  for  the  mere  sake  of  a  public  discussion 
on  "mooted  points  of  theology,"  between  their 
*•  Medicine  Men"  and  Father  Mermet.  They  might 
follow  the  chase  of  their  enemies  that  distance,  but 
I  doubt  much,  whether  they  would  travel  that  far,, 
to  learn  whether  tlie  "Manitoji"  of  the  Frenchman 
or  the  ''Manitou  of  the  Mascouten"  was  the  one  to 
lie  worshipped. 

In  the  second  place,  the  French  Imd  no  settlement 
on  the  Ohia  in  the  early  part  of  the  18th  century — 
by  a  settlement  I  moan  a  fixed  establishment,  a  gar- 
rison, a  town.  Sieur  Juchereau,  for  aught  I  know, 
may  have  had  a  trading  house  there,  but  there  was 
no  regular  French,  establishment;,  and,  according  to 
J^^atlier  Marest,  it  was  to  such  an  establishment  al- 
ready garrisoned — "a  Fort,"  that  Father  Mermet 
went  with  the  primary  object  of  accomplishing  the 
conversion  of  the  "Mascoutens"  to  the  true  faith.. 
1  quote  from  the  original  letter  of  Father  Marest  to- 
Father  Germon,  volume  6th,  page  333  of  the  ''/.f/- 
tret}  Ed'tfiantes  et  Curieuses,"  dated  Kaskaskia,  No- 
vember Dth,  171L.. 

''Les  Francok  itoient  Uahli  un  Fort  sur  lefleuve 
'OuABACHE,.'  ih  demanderent  un  lu'mouaire;  et  k 
Fere  Mermet  leiirfut  envoy e..  Ce  Fere  crut  devoir 
travailler  a  la  conversion  des  Mascot,  tens  qui  avoient 
fait  un  village  sur  les  lords  duineme  fleuve — c^est  wm 
nation  Indians  qui  entend  la  langue  Illvnoisey 

Now  I  have  mentioned  the  fact,  and  given  the 
reasons  why  the  Ohio  was  called  "Ouabache"  by 
the  same  Father,  and  by  others,  a  reason,  as  it  ap^ 


i 


NOTES. 


49 


pears  to  me  perfectly  satisfactory.  And  as  the 
French  settled  Vincennes,  and  established  a  Fort 
there  early  in  the  18th  century;  and  as  the  "Mas- 
coutens"  were  located  on  that  stream,  and  not  on 
the  Ohio,  and  being  a  branch  of  the  Miamis,  and  a 
portion  of  the  Algonquin  race,  of  course  supposed 
to  understand  the  ^^Illinoise"  I  think  it  conclusive 
that  the  "local"  of  Father  Mermet's  labors  was  the 
'•Post"  or  "Fort"  at  Vincennes,  and  not  the  site  at 
the  confluence  of  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi,  where 
Sieur  Juchereau  may,  or  may  not,  have  made  a  set- 
tlement. At  any  rate,  until  some  further  evidence 
is  produced,  I  shall,  as  I  have  done  in  the  text, 
claim  the  honor  of  Father  Mermet's  first  visit  for 
"Post  VvMeivnes^ 

Note  B. 

It  was  a  very  difficult  matter  to  induce  the  French 
inhabitants  at  Kaskaskia,  after  Clark's  arrival  there 
and  capture  of  the  place,  to  take  the  "Continental 
paper,"  which  Clark  and  his  soldiers  had  brought 
along  with  them;  and  it  was  not  until  after  Col. 
Vigo  went  there  and  gave  his  guaranty  for  its  re- 
demption, that  they  would  genera^y  receive  it. 
Peltries  and  piastres  were  the  only  cun'ency  known 
to  these  simple  and  unsophisticated  Frenchmen. 
They  could  neither  read  nor  write,  and  Col.  Vigo 
had  great  difficulty  in  explaining  the  operations  of 
this  new  financial  arrangement  to  them.  "  Their 
commandants  never  made  money,"  was  the  only 
reply  to  the  Colonel's  explanations  of  the  policy  of 
the  "Old  Dominion"  in  these  issues.  But  notwith- 
4 


50 


NOTES. 


lii 

1-1  ' 


standing  the  Colonel's  guaranty,  the  paper  was  not 
in  good  credit,  and  ultimately  became  very  much 
depreciated.  The  Colonel  had  a  trading  establish- 
ment at  Kaskaskia  after  Clark's  arrival.  Coffee 
was  one  dollar  per  pound.  The  poor  Frenchman 
coming  to  purchase,  was  asked  "what  kind  of  pay- 
ment he  intended  to  make  for  it?  "  '■^Banlenr,^''  said 
he.  And  when  it  is  recollected  that  it  took  about 
twenty  continental  dollars  to  purchase  a  silver  dol- 
lar's worth  of  coffee,  and  that  the  French  word 
^^douleur"  signifies  "grief,"  or  "pain,"  perhajis  no 
word,  either  in  the  French  or  English  languages, 
expressed  the  idea  more  correctly,  than  "f/ow7ci/r" 
for  "continental  dollars."  At  any  rate,  it  was  truly 
^Uloulmr^^  to  the  Colonel ;  for  he  never  received  a 
sinffle  dollar  in  exchange  for  the  large  amount  he  had 
taken  in  order  to  sustain  Clark's  credit.  The  above 
anecdote  I  had  from  the  Colonel's  own  lips. 


9  »!  t 


Mi!  ■' 

J'i,' 
if 


Note  C. 

I  am  indebted,  and  much  indebted,  to  my  friend 
Prof.  Bliss,  of  Louisville,  Kentucky,  for  the  letters 
of  Gen.  Clark,  and  the  extract  from  Major  Bow- 
man's journa^l^f  the  capture  of  Vincennes,  now  for 
the  first  time  published.  I  cannot  but  again  repeat, 
what  I  have  in  the  address  so  pointedly  remarked, 
how  little  is  known  of  the  campaign  of  1778,  1779, 
and  the  capture  of  Kaskaskia  and  Vincennes  by 
Clark  and  his  gallant  followers.  With  the  excej)- 
tion  of  a  short  notice  of  this  in  "Marshall's  Lite  of 
Washington,"  and  the  more  extended  one  of  But- 
ler in  his  "History  of  Kentucky,"  a  modern  work, 


NOTES. 


61 


the  incidents  of  that  campaign  are  hardly  noticed. 
Yet  it  was,  as  it  regards  its  ultimate  effects  to  the 
Union,  decidedly  the  most  brilliant  and  useful,  of 
any  undertaking  during  the  revolutionary  war. — 
Clark  by  that  campaign  added  a  territory  em- 
bracing three  of  the  finest  States  in  the  Union, 
to  the  Confederacy,  to-wit:  Indiana,  Illinois,  and 
Michigan;  a  territory,  which,  but  for  this  very  con- 
quest, must  now  have  been  subject  to  British  do- 
minion, unless  like  Louisiana,  it  had  since  been 
acquired  by  purchase.  For  the  only  pretence  of 
title  which  our  commissioners,  in  the  negotiations 
which  resulted  in  the  treaty  of  peace  in  1783,  set  up 
to  this  immense  territory,  was  "the  capture  of  it  by 
Clark,  and  the  possession  of  it  by  the  Americans  at 
the  date  of  the  conference."  The  argument  of  "«/"/ 
possidetis''^  prevailed;  and  the  mind  would  be  lost  in 
the  calculation  of  dollars  and  cents,  to'  Siay  nothing 
of  the  other  matters  "  which  constitnta  a  State," — 
men  "who  kiiow  their  rights"  inhabiting  it,  and 
which  the  government  has  gained  from  the  contest — 
as  to  what  will  be  the  wealth  and  population  of  this 
same  North- Western  Territory  a  half  century  hence. 

Most  of  the  facts  connected  with  the  capture  of 
Kaskaskia  are  derived  from  "Butler's  History  of 
Kentucky,"  a  new  edition  of  which  has  lately  been 
published.  It  is  a  very  useful  and  valuable  work, 
and  contains  more  incidents  connected  with  western 
history,  particularly  the  campaign  of  Clark  in  Illi- 
nois in  1778-'9,  than  any  other  work  heretofore  pub- 
lished.   '^•--    -  '■•'^    ■  -  ■■  "'^^'"-  (''■'-■■'    -■   ••'  ' 

Since  the  first  publication  of  this  address,  my 


T 


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M 


M. 


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■•',1  ■' 


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111 


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'4  M 


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52 


NOTES. 


friend,  Professor  Bliss,  was  killed  in  a  rencounter  at 
Louisville.     Of  the  circumstances  attending  his 
death,  I  am  not  sufficiently  informed  ta  give  the 
particulars,   nor  would  it  be  at  this  late  period 
proper  for  me  to  do  so,  even  were  it  in  my  power 
to  detail  them.    All  who  knew  him  will  admit  that 
a  more  amiable,  intelligent,  and  high  minded  man 
never  existed,  and  none  whose  death,  under  the 
circumstances  attending  it,  was  ever  more  lamented. 
'''•  Requiescat  mpace."    At  the  time  of  his  death  he 
was  preparing  for  publication  the  "Life  of  General 
George  Rogers  Clark,"  and  had  been  for  several 
years  acquiring  the  materials  to  enable  him  to  do 
so.    It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  in  the  dispen- 
sations of  Proyidence,  he  was  not  spared  to  finish 
the  work.    I  knew  no  man  more  capable  of  such  an 
undertaking;  and  I  have  no  doubt  had  he  lived,  we 
should  have  been  furnished  with  a  life  of  General 
Clark,  which  not  only  would  have  done  justice  to 
that  great  man,  but  have  been  highly  creditable  to 
the  author.    What  became  of  the  materials  which 
he  had  with  great  labor  collected  for  the  undertak- 
ing, I  do  not  know.     If  in  the  hands  of  his  friends,, 
they  should  be  carefully  preserved  for  the  use  v.f 
some  future  historian.    The  life  of  ''General  Clark" 
would  be  a  national  worky  and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that 
some  western  Preseott  or  Bancroft  will,  ere  the  ma- 
terials are  lost,  get  hold  of  them  and  furnish  u& 
with  one  of  the  mo»t  interesting  volumes  that  has 
ever  been  printed.    J  Vnow  of  no  work  that  would 
be  more  eagerly  sought  for  in  the  west — the  field  of 
his  patriotiam,  enterprise,  and  valor. 


1 


m 


APPENDIX. 


I 

i: 


FATHER  GIBAULT. 

■SERVICES  TO  CLARK  AND  HIS  PATRIOTISM  BUT  POORLY  COMPENSATED. 

Pierre  Gibault,  Parish  Priest  at  Vincennes,  and 
occasionally  performing  his  apostolie  duties  on  the 
Mississippi,  was  at  Kaskaskia  in  1778-9,  when  Gen. 
Clark  captured  that  place.    The  services  he  ren- 
dered Clark  in  that  campaign,  which  were  acknowl- 
ijdged  by  a  resolution  of  the  Legislature  of  Virginia, 
in  1780 — ^his  patriotism,  his  sacrifices,  his  courage 
and  love  of  liberty,  require  of  me  a  fuller  notice  of 
this  good  man  and  pure  patriot,  than  I  have  been 
•enabled  to  give  in  the  published  address.    Father 
Gibault  was  a  Jesuit  missionary  to  the  Illinois  at 
an  early  period,  and  had  the  curacy  of  the  parish  at 
Kaskaskia  when  Clark  took  possession  of  that  post; 
and  no  man  has  paid  a  more  sincere  tribute  to 
the  services  rendered  by  Father  Gibault  to  the 
American  cause,  than  Clark  himself.     It  was  a 
matter  of  deep  importance,  especially  after  the 
arrest  of  Rochblave,  the  commandant  at  Kaskaskia, 
for  Clark  to  conciliate,  if  possible,  the  ancient  in- 
habitants residing  at  Kaskaskia,    This  he  effectu- 


&1 


APPENDIX. 


liHi: 


m^i 


ii! 


M 
lis* 


'  ■   ,  f: 


ally  did  through  the  agency  of  Father  Gibault. 
Through  his  influence,  not  only  were  the  French 
population  of  Kaskaskia  induced  to  supply  the 
troops  with  provisions  and  other  necessaries,  but  to 
receiA'^e  the  depreciated  continental  paper  currency 
of  Virginia  at  par,  for  all  supplies  thus  furnished, 
Vigo  adding  his  guaranty  for  its  redemption,  and 
receiving  it  doHar  for  dollar,  not  only  from  the  sol- 
diers, but  from  the  inhabitants,  until  it  became  en- 
tirely worthless.  Father  Gibault,  but  especially 
Vigo,  had  on  hand  at  the  close  of  the  campaign, 
more  than  twenty  thousand  dollars  of  this  worth- 
less trash,  (the  only  funds,  however,  which  Clark 
had  in  his  military  chest,)  and  not  one  dollar  of 
which  was  ever  redeemed,  either  for  Vigo  or  Father 
Gibault,  who,  for  this  worthless  trash,  disposed 
"of  all  his  cattle,  and  the  tithes  of  his  parish- 
oners,"  in  order  to  sustain  Clark  and  his  troops, 
without  which  aid  they  must  have  surrendered, 
surrounded  as  they  were,  by  the  Indian  allies  of  the 
British,  and  deprived  of  all  resources  but  those  fur- 
nished by  the  French  inhabitants,  through  the  per- 
suasion of  Vigo  and  Father  Gibault.  But  more 
than  thif,.  Through  the  influence  of  these  men, 
when  Clark  left  Kaskaskia  for  the  purpose  of  cap- 
turing Hamilton  and  his  men  at  post  Vincennes,  a 
company  of  fifty  young  Frenchmen  was  raised  at 
Kaskaskia,  who  joined  Clark's  troops,  under  the 
command  of  Captain  Charlevoix,  who  shared  in  all 
the  perils  and  honors  of  that  glorious  campaign, 
which  ended  in  the  capture  of  the  Post,  and  the  sur- 
render of  Hamilton,  an  event  more  important  in  its 


FATHER  OIBAULT. 


65 


totiseqiiences  than  any  other  occurring  during  our 
revolutionary  struggle. 

It  was  entirely  through  the  means  of  Father 
Gibault  that  Hamilton  released  Col.  Vigo,  when 
«ent  by  Clark  to  ascertain  the  true  situation  of 
affairs  at  Vincennes.  He  was  captured  by  the  In- 
dians and  taken  to  "Fort  Sackville,"  where  he  was 
kept  a  prisoner  on  parole  for  many  weeks,  and  re- 
leased, entirely  by  the  interference  of  Father  Gi- 
bault, and  the  declaration  of  the  French  inhabitants 
at  Vincennes,  who,  with  their  priest  at  their  head, 
after  service  on  the  Sabbath,  marched  to  the  fort 
and  informed  Hamilton  "they  would  refuse  all  sup- 
plies to  the  garrison  unless  Vigo  was  released." 
Of  that  release,  and  the  important  effect  of  Vigo's 
information  to  Clark  on  his  return  to  Kaskaskia,  in 
reference  to  the  cp,pture  of  the  Post  by  Hamilton,  I 
have  already  spoken.  Next  to  Clark  and  Vigo,  the 
United  States  are  indebted  more  to  Father  Gibault 
for  the  accession  of  tho  States,  comprised  in  what 
Avas  the  original  North-Western  Territory,  than  to 
any  other  man.  The  following  memorial  from  this 
excellent  man,  to  Gen.  St.  Clair,  then  Governor  of 
the  North- Western  Territory,  dated  "Kahokia, 
May  1,  1790,"  so  true,  so  delicate,  so  modest,  so 
unassuming,  so  free  from  self-laudation,  so  perfectly 
characteristic  of  this  good  father,  deserves  publica- 
tion in  connection  with  the  facts  above  described,  in 
reference  to  his  services  to  the  Government,  in  the 
most  trying  jjeriod  of  its  colonial  history: 

"Kahokia,  May  1st,  1790. 

The  undersigned,  memorialist,  has  the  honor  to 


APPENDIX. 


« ■ 
iS  ,11 


I 


i 


»■*■■ 


represent  to  your  excellency,  that  from  the  moment 
of  the  conquest  of  the  Illinois  country,  by  CoL 
George  Rogers  Clark,  he  has  not  been  backward 
in  venturing  his  life,  on  the  many  occasions  in 
which  he  found  that  his  presence  was  useful,  and 
at  all  times  sacrificing  his  property,  which  he  gave 
for  the  support  of  the  troops,  at  the  same  price  that 
he  could  have  received  in  Spanish  milled  dollars,  and 
for  which,  however,  he  has  received  only  paper  doU 
Uirs,  (continental  currency,)  of  which  he  has  had  no 
information  since  he  sent  them,  addressed  to  the 
Commissioner  of  Congress,  who  required  a  state- 
ment of  the  depreciation  of  them  at  the  Belle  Riviere, 
(Ohio  river)  in  1783,  with  an  express  promise  in 
reply,  that  particular  attention  should  be  paid  to  his 
account,  because  it  was  well  known  to  be  in  no  wise 
exaggerated.  In  reality,  he  parted  with  his  tithes 
and  his  beasts,  only  to  set  an  example  to  his  par- 
ishoners,  who  began  to  perceive  that  it  was  in- 
tended to  pillage  them  and  abandon  them  after- 
wards, which  really  took  place.  The  want  of  seven 
thousand  eight  hundred  livres,  (or  upwards  of  $1,- 
600  our  cuiTency,)  of  the  non-payment  of  which  the 
American  notes  has  deprived  him  the  use,  has 
obliged  him  to  sell  two  good  slaves,  who  would  now 
be  the  support  of  his  old  age,  and  for  the  want 
of  whom,  he  now  finds  himself  dependent  on  the 
public,  who,  although  well  served,  are  very  rarely 
led  to  jkeep  their  promises,  except  that  part  who,  em- 
ploying their  time  in  such  service,  are  supported  by 
the  secular  power,  that  is  to  say,  by  the  civil  govr 
^ument. 


FATHER  OIBAULT. 


67 


The  love  of  country  and  of  liberty  has  also  led 
your  memorialist  to  reject  all  the  advantages  oifered 
him  by  the  Spanish  government;  and  he  endeav- 
ored by  every  means  in  his  power,  by  exertions  and 
exhortations,  and  by  letters  to  the  principal  inhab- 
itants, to  retain  every  person  in  the  dominion  of  the 
United  States  in  expectation  of  better  times,  and 
giving  them  to  understand  that  our  lives  and  prop- 
erty having  been  employed  twelve  years  in  the 
aggrandizement  and  preservation  of  the  United 
States,  would  at  last  receive  an  acknowledgment, 
and  be  compensated  by  the  enlightened  and  upright 
ministers,  who  sooner  or  later  would  come  to  exam- 
ine into,  and  relieve  us  from  our  situation.  We 
begin  to  see  the  accomplishment  of  these  hopes, 
under  the  happy  government  of  your  excellency, 
and  as  your  memorialist  has  every  reason  to  be- 
lieve, from  proofs  which  would  bo  too  long  to  ex- 
plain here,  you  are  one  of  the  number  who  have 
been  the  most  forward,  in  risking  their  lifes  and  for- 
tunes for  their  country. 

He  also  hopes  that  his  demand  will  be  listened 
to  favorably.  It  is  this:  The  missionaries,  like 
lords,  have  at  all  times  possessed  two  tracts  of 
land  near  this  village;  one  three  acres  in  front, 
which  produces  but  little  hay,  three-quarters  being 
useless  by  a  great  morass;  the  other  of  two  acres  in 
front,  which  may  be  cultivated,  and  which  the  me- 
morialist will  have  cultivated  with  care,  and  pro- 
poses to  have  a  dwelling  erected  on  it,  with  a  yard 
and  orchard,  in  case  his  claim  is  accepted.  Your 
excellency  may  think,  perhaps,  that  this  might  in- 


w 


rm 


58 


APPENDIX.  * 


m 


If: 


'■  *> 


Si 
■  'id 


t 


^'^ 


jure  some  of  the  inhabitants,  but  it  will  not.  It 
would  be  difficult  to  hire  them  to  cause  an  enclosure 
to  be  made  of  the  size  of  these  tracts,  so  much  land 
have  they  more  than  they  cultivate.  May  it  please 
your  excellency  then,  to  grant  them  to  your  memo- 
rialist as  belonging  to  the  domain  of  the  United 
States,  and  give  him  a  concession,  to  be  enjoyed  in 
full  propriety  in  his  private  name,  and  not  as  mis- 
sionary and  priest,  to  pass  to  his  successor;  other- 
wise, the  memorialist  will  not  accept  it. 

It  ii.  for  the  services  he  has  already  rendered, 
and  those  which  he  still  hopes  to  render,  as  far  as 
circumstances  may  offer,  and  he  may  be  capable, 
and  particularly  on  the  bounty  with  which  you  re- 
lieve those  who  stand  in  need  of  assistance,  that  he 
founds  his  demand.     In  hopes  of  being  soon  of  the 
number  of  those  who  praise  heaven  for  your  fortu- 
nate arrival  in  this  country,  and  who  desire  your 
prosperity  in  everything,  your  memorialist  has  the 
honor  of  being,  with  the  most  profound  respect, 
Your  excellency's  most  obedient 
and  most  humble  servant. 
"P.  GIBAUI.T,  Priest 

"  To  li  is  excellency,  Arthur  St.  Clair, 
Major  General  of  the  Army  cf  the  United  States,  and 

Governor  of  the  Territory  possessed  by  the  United 

States,  north-west  of  the  river  Ohio,  d-c,  d^c." 

Whether  "a  concession  to  be  enjoyed  in  full  pro- 
priety" by  the  venerated  father,  "in  his  private 
name,  and  not  as  missionary  and  priest,  of  the  two 
acres  in  front  of  the  village  of  Kahokia,"  on  which  he 
proposed  to  have  "a  dwelling  erected,  with  a  gar- 


W' 


i 


FATHER  GIBAULT. 


59 


den  and  orchard  on  it,"  was  ever  made,  I  do  not 
know;  if  there  was,  there  is  no  record  of  it.  Gov* 
St.  Clair,  in  his  report  to  Mr.  Jefferson,  Secretary 
of  State,  in  1791,  makes  the  following  remarks  in 
relation  to  this  memorial : 

"  jS'o.  24  is  the  request  of  ^Mr.  Gibault,  for  a  small 
piece  of  land  that  has  long  been  in  the  occupation 
of  the  priests  at  Kahokia,  having  been  assigned 
them  by  the  French,  but  he  wishes  to  possess  it  in 
propriety,  and  it  is  true  that  he  was  very  useful  to 
Gen.  Clark  upon  many  occasions,  and  has  suffered 
very  heavy  losses.  I  believe  no  injury  would  be 
done  to  any  one  by  his  request  being  granted,  but 
it  was  not  for  me  to  give  away  the  lands  of  the  Uni- 
ted States." 

In  the  concessions  made  by  Winthrop  Sargent, 
at  the  "town  at  post  Vincenncs,"  while  acting  as 
Crovernor  in  place  of  Gen.  St.  Clair,  I  find  the  fol- 
lowing concession  made  in  July,  1790:  "Rev.  Peter 
Gibault,  a  lot  about  fourteen  toises,  one  side  to  Mr. 
I^Iillet,  another  to  Mr.  Vaudrey,  ami  to  two  streets." 
Rather  an  indefinite  description  of  the  boundaries ; 
but  the  "ambitious  city"  of  1856,  I  presume  in 
1790,  had  neither  a  Mayor,  or  City  Engineer,  to 
run  out  the  good  father's  lines.  Judging  from  the 
description  of  the  concessions  as  then  made,  it  would 
be  somewhat  troublesome  in  these  modern  times,  to 
find  them.  A  few  examples  may  not  be  uninter- 
esting, as  evidencing  the  loose  mode  in  which  sur- 
veys of  town  lots  were  made  nearly  seventy  years 
since,  at  the  "0  Post:" 

"TAe  widow  of  Peter  Grrimare — ^A  house  and  lot, 


60 


APPEKOIZ. 


S 


•■I' 


i'S..; 


the  boundaries  not  expressed^  but  to  be  surveyed 
Agreably  UiposaessUm,  not  wterfermg  vMh  the  streets." 

^^For  the  CAmtcA— Four  arpents  front  upon  the 
Wabash,  by  the  usual  depth;  a  lot  where  the  church 
stands,  about  twenty  toises,  for  the  church  or  Mr. 
Antoine  Gamelin." 

^^Liike  Decker — ^A  lot  twenty-five  toises  by  fifty- 
one,  side  to  Sullivan,  and  three  sides  to  streets;  a 
tract  of  two  acres  in  front  by  forty  deep,  on  river 
dv,  Ch%  one  side  to  Martin.  This  tract  is  said  to 
have  been  by  French  concession,  but  none  has  been 
l)roduced.     His  house  is  built  thereon." 

^^ Robert  Buntin—A.  house  and  lot  in  Vincennes, 
front  to  the  Wabash,  back  to  the  Indian  fields^  one 
side  by  Maonaman,  on  the  other  hy  Francis  the  Cats- 
paw,  about  one  acre  in  length  each  way." 

Among  the  numerous  concessions  made  to  T%o, 
we  find  the  following: 

"Three  pieces  of  land  in  the  old  Indian  village, 
sold  by  Montour  and  other  chiefs  to  Spring  and 
Busseron,  in  May,  1786." 

"Five  pieces  of  land  formerly  held  by  the  Kettle 
Carrier,  sold  by  Quiquilaquia,  the  grand  son  of  Ket- 
tle Carrier,  with  the  approbation  of  Montour  and  the 
other  chiefs." 

"Five  pieces  of  land  in  the  old  Piankeshaw  town 
at  Vincennes,  sold  by  Montour." 

^^  Henry  Vandei'burgh — A  piece  of  land,  twelve 
arpents  more  or  less,  a  part  of  sundry  fields,  for- 
merly the  lands  of  the  Fiankeshaws,  lying  at  the  east 
of  the  VILLAGE.  A  piece  of  land  containing  two 
fields  joining  each  other,  on  the  old  .Indian  village. 


m 


HAMILTON. 


61 


sixty  toises  on  one  side,  forty  on  the  other,  bounded 
in  front  by  the  street  where  Du  Beta  lives,  and  on 
the  rear  partly  by  the  fields  of  AUebomane,  and 
partly  by  that  of  Nisbrache,  part  of  Samuel  Brad- 
ley's land  on  one  side,  and  on  the  other  the  field  of 
Saspacona  and  Nez  du  Carlin,  sold  by  Nez  du  Car- 
lin  to  Pierre  Gamelin." 

It  would  be  very  difficult  for  a  surveyor,  with 
chain  and  compass  at  the  present  tinier  to  run  out 
these  ancient  boundaries. 


1 


II. 

HAMILTON. 

r      HIS  IMPRISONMENT  AND  CAREER  AFTER  HIS  CAPTURE  BY  CLARI. 

At  the  surrender  of  Burgoyne,  in  1777,  about  four 
thousand  British  troops  fell  prisoners  of  war,  into 
the  hands  of  the  Americans.  By  the  capitulation^ 
tiiey  were  to  remain  prisoners  in  the  hands  of  the 
Americans  until  arrangements  were  made  between 
tiic  mother  country  and  ours^  in  relation  to  ex- 
changes of  prisoners.  They  were  first  ordered  to 
I^oston,  where  they  remained  about  a  year,  and 
were  then  ordered  to  Charlottesville,  in  Virginia, 
near  to  Montieello,  for  greater  security.  They  ar* 
rived  there  in  January,  1779,  and  aside  from  the 
liardships  of  a  long  journey  by  land,  in  the  midst  of 
winter,  to  their  destination,  they  found  themselves 
with  barracks  unfinished,  with  a  great  insufficiency 


62 


APPENDIX. 


m 


^^r 


of  provisions,  and  with  but  a  jjoor  prospect  of  siip- 
))lies.  Great  alarm  was  excited  among  the  inhab- 
itants by  this  accession  to  their  jiopulation,  and 
great  fears  were  entertained  lest  a  famine  should 
be  created,  this  portion  of  Virginia  then  being  but 
])oorly  supplied  with  bread,  and  other  articles  of 
necessity  for  its  own  use.  Through  the  influence 
of  Jefferson,  then  at  Monticello,  and  his  appeals  to 
the  planters,  all  their  wants  were  fully  supplied. 
J^ot  only  this,  but  he  personally  engaged  in  pro- 
viding barracks  for  the  men  and  quarters  for  the 
oflftcers.  It  is  true  they  were  the  enemies  of  his 
country,  but  they  were  human  beings,  and  in  his 
judgment,  as  much  entitled  to  those  kindly  offices 
due  to  his  fellow-men  in  distress,  and  prisoners  of 
war,  as  those  of  his  countrymen  would  be,  united 
though  they  were,  by  the  strong  ties  of  national 
alliance  and  affection.  No  means  were  left  un- 
tried by  this  great  and  good  man,  to  render  the 
situation  of  these  captives  as  comfortable  as  circum- 
stances would  allow.  Aided  by  the  philanthropy 
of  his  fellow  citizens,  to  whom  he  made  more  than 
one  appeal,  and  by  the  humane  and  generous  dis- 
position of  the  commissary,  his  entreaties  were 
crowned  with  success.  The  barracks  were  com- 
fortably fitted  up,  and  a  plentiful  supply  of  provis- 
ions furnished  the  prisoners.  All  this  had  hardly 
been  effected,  when  Governor  Henry,  who  had  been 
invested  by  Congress  with  certain  discretionary 
powers  over  these  ^''convention  troops,^^  (as  they  Were 
called,)  alledging  the  inability  of  the  State  to  supply 
them,  determined  to  remove  them  from  Charlottes- 


HAMILTON. 


63 


ville.    This  intelligence  produced  the  greatest  re- 
gret and  disappointment  among  the  prisoners. — 
They  complained  against  the  inhumanity  of  the 
order,  charged  the  government  with  a  want  of  good 
faith,   and  gave  evident  symptoms  of  a  mutiny. 
The  citizens  of  Charlottesville  strongly  disapproved 
of  the  measure,  and  received  the  proposition  with 
regret  and  disapprobation.    Mr.  Jefferson  coincided 
with  them,  and  addressed  a  long  and  elaborate  let- 
ter to  Gov.  Henry,  suggesting  that  such  an  act 
would  be  indicative  of  bad  faith  and  "a  character  of 
unsteadiness  and  imbecility,  and,  what  was  worse, 
of  cruelty  in  the  councils  of  the  nation."    In  con- 
formity with  these  views,  the  proposition  was  aban- 
doned, and  the  prisoners  permitted  to  remain  at 
Charlottesville    The  effect  of  this  conduct  of  Mr. 
Jefferson,  his  universal  kindness  to  the  men,  and 
his  uniform  amenity  and  courtesy  to  the  officers, 
endeared  all  to  him ;  so  that  when  exchanged,  both 
men  and  officers,  on  taking  leave  at  Charlottes- 
ville, addressed  him  verbally  and  by  letters,  ex- 
pressing  their   gratitude   and  good  feeling,    and 
bidding  him  an  affectionate  adieu.     Speaking  of 
Mr.  Jefferson's  conduct  on  that  occasion,  a  French 
historian  narrating  the  circumstances,  beautifully 
says:     "Surely,  this  innocent  and  bloodless  con- 
quest over  the  minds  of  men,  whose  swords  had 
been  originally  hired  to  the  oppressors  of  America, 
was  in  itself  scarcely  less  glorious,  though  in  its 
effects  less  extensively  beneficial,  than  the  splendid 
train  of  victories  which  had  disarmed  their  hands." 
I  mention  these  circumstances  in  order  to  draw  a 


n 


1 


64 


APPENDEC. 


ill 


.'  'h» 


J.)'.   . 


ii. 


,  ill 


ill 


parallel  between  the  conduct  of  our  people,  and 
those  of  the  British  on  similar  occasions  during  the 
war  of  the  Revolution,  when  the  Americans  fell  into 
their  hands.     Through  the  whole  course  of  that 
contest,  whenever  the  fortune  of  war  placed  our 
people  in  their  power,  their  treatment  to  them  was 
savage  in  the  extreme,  and  unprecedented  in  the 
history  of  civilized  nations.    On  our  side,  the  treat- 
ment of  British  prisoners  was  uniformly  marked 
with  moderation,  and  kind,  good  feeling.    We  were, 
like  our  foes,  children  from  a  common  stock,  of  the 
same  blood,  speaking  the  same  language.    When 
they  yielded  to  our  arms — became  prisoners  of  war 
— we  supplied  them  on  all  occasions  with  the  neo- 
essaries  of  life,  such  as  our  fathers  themselves  were 
accustomed  to,  with  comfortable  quarters.    We  per- 
mitted them  to  live  in  American  families,  on  their 
parole  to  range  at  large,  to  labor  for  themselves* 
hold  and  enjoy  property,  participating  in  the  ben- 
efits of  society  while  sharing  none  of  its  burdens. 
To  their  officers  captured  ours  were  always  hospita- 
ble, always  courteous.     If  any  one  doubts  this,  let 
him  read  the  letters  of  Gen.  Phillips,  Baron  Rud- 
i.sel,  and  others,  who  surrendered  themselves  pris- 
oners with  Burgoyne's  army,  after  their  exchange, 
addressed  to  the  officers  of  the  continental  army, 
expressive  of  their  lasting  attachment  and  grati- 
tude, and  bidding  them  an  affectionate  adieu. — 
While  on  the  other  hand,  is  it  *iot  a  matter  of 
history,  that  British  officers,  civil  and  military* 
throughout  the  whole  war,  had  pursued  a  most  sav* 
age  and  relentless  course  towards  all  who  fell  into 


I 


i 


? 


HAMILTON. 


65 


their  hands — ^that  they  loaded  with  irons  all  Amer- 
ican officers  and  soldiers  captured  by  them,  making 
no  distinction  between  them,  as  they  acknowledged 
none,  all  were  rebels — ^that  they  consigned  them  to 
prison-ships,  crowded  gaols,  and  loathsome  dun- 
geons, often  without  food,  or  when  supplied,  with 
quantities  that  were  small,  unsound  and  loathsome 
— that  the  wounded  were  uncared  for  and  unat- 
tended, the  sick  unprovided  for — that  our  men  were 
transported  beyond  seas,  or  compelled  by  brute 
force  to  take  arms  against  their  countrymen,  and 
by  a  refinement  in  cruelty  unknown  to  the  cannibals 
of  New  Zealand,  to  become  the  murderers  of  their 
brethren?  All  these  things  were  known  and  felt 
then.  History  has  recorded  in  bloody  pages  the 
Briton's  wrath,  the  Briton's  malice,  and  murder  of 
our  countrymen. 

Mr.  Jeflferson,  than  whom  no  one  who  took  part 
in  our  revolutionary  contest  knew  better  the  con- 
trast between  the  conduct  of  the  two  belligerents 
than  he  did,  and  from  personal  observation,  was 
elected  Governor  of  the  Commonwealth  of  Virginia, 
in  June,  1779.  The  executive  of  that  great  State, 
elected  by  the  unanimous  vote  of  her  people  to  take 
the  helm,  in  the  most  critical  situation  of  her  affairs, 
had  no  sooner  taken  possession  of  the  executive 
chair,  than  "he  felt  himself  impelled  by  a  sense  of 
public  justice,  to  substitute  a  system  of  vigorous 
retaliation."  In  the  language  of  his  own  impres- 
sive order,  "he  felt  called  on  by  that  justice  we  owe 
to  those  fighting  the  battles  of  our  country,  to  deal 
out  miseries  to  their  enemies,  measure  for  measure, 

6 


I 


,il. 


66 


APPENDIX. 


and  to  distress  the  feelings  of  mankind  by  exhibit* 
ing  to  them  spectacles  of  severe  retaliation,  where 
he  had  long  and  vainly  endeavored  to  introduce  an 
emulation  in  kindness." 

Singular  enough,  the  "fortune  of  war"  and  the 
conquest  of  Clark  had  placed  in  his  hands  some  of 
those  very  individuals,  who  having  distinguished 
themselves  above  their  fellows  in  the  practice  of  the 
most  atrocious  cruelties;  who  had  whetted  the  scalp- 
ing knife  of  the  Indian,  who,  in  this  remotest  west, 
had  planned  and  plotted  the  massacre  of  the  fron- 
tiersman, "and  fattened  their  cornfields"  with  the 
blood  of  their  wives  and  children,  and  who,  more 
cruel  than  the  savages  whom  they  had  incited  to 
murder  and  rapine,  were  on  this  account  proper  sub- 
jects on  which  to  begin  the  ^''ork  of  retaliation. 
Henry  Hamilton,  whose  capture  by  Clark  at  "Post 
Vincennes,"  on  the  24th  of  February,  1779,  is  briefly 
noted  with  its  attending  circumstances,  in  the  ad- 
di'ess  to  which  this  note  is  appended,  and  who  for 
some  years  before  his  surprise  of  that  Post,  and  the 
capture  of  Helms,  had  acted  as  Lieutenant  and 
Governor  of  the  British  possessions  at  Detroit  under 
Sir  Geo.  Carleton;  Phillip  Dejean,  Justice  of  the 
Peace  for  Detroit,  and  William  Lamothe,  Captain 
of  Volunteers,  taken  prisoners  of  war  by  Clark,  had 
been  sent  under  guard  by  him  to  Williamsburgh 
early  in  June,  1779.  Proclamations — under  his  mon 
handf  offering  a  specific  sum  for  every  American 
acalp  brought  into  the  camp,  either  by  hia  own 
iaroops,  or  his  allies,  the  Indians,  and  from  this 
fieuit  denominated  the  "Haib-Buyeb  General"  bj 


W'.Jl'' 


HAMILTON. 


67 


Clark  in  his  proclamation  to  tho  French  inhabi- 
tants of  Vineennes — as  well  as  the  concurrent  tes- 
timony of  many  unprejudiced  witnesses,  all  prove 
Governor  Hamilton  a  remorseless  destroyer  of  not 
only  men,  but  of  innocent  and  unoffending  women 
and  children.     A  cruel,  heartless  and  savage  mon- 
ster, instead  of  an  open  and  honorable  enemy.     He 
not  only  excited  the  savage  to  perpetrate  their  ac- 
customed atrocities  upon  the  citizens  of  the  United 
8tates,  but  with  a  blood-thirsty  barbarity  of  which 
history  in  modern  times  gives  but  few  examples,  he 
exhibited  such  an  eagerness  and  ingenuity  in  plan- 
ning these  murderous  forays,  as  evidenced,  that  the 
hunting  and  scalping  of  this  human  game  harmon- 
ized with  his  own  peculiar  and  savage  instincts. 
While  he  gave  a  standing  premium  for  scalps,  he 
offered  no  reward  for  prisoners,  so  that  his  Indian 
allies,  after  forcing  their  prisoners  to  carry  their 
plunder  into  the  neighborhood  of  the  Fort,  butch- 
ered their  captives,  and  carried  their  scalps  to  the 
Governor,  who  welcomed  their  return  and  success 
with  a  salvo  of  cannon,  and  an  abundant  supply  of 
"  fire-water."     Even  the  few  Americans  who  were 
spared  by  these  blood-hounds,  were  doomed  by  Ham- 
ilton to  a  series  of  lingering  and  complicated  tor- 
tures, worse  even  than  those  inflicted  by  his  savage 
allies,  and  ending  finally  in  their  death.    Dejean 
and  Lamothe  were,  as  it  is  well  known,  the  ready 
instruments  of  Hamilton's  vengeance.    The  former 
acting  in  the  double  capacity  of  judge  and  jailor  to 
the  tyrant;  the  other  as  a  commander  of  the  vol- 
unteer scalping  parties  of  Indians  and  whites,  spar- 


'I 
1! 


IT 


tJ8 


APPENDIX. 


It 


lit 


M 


x'liM 


;V4 


ing  neither  age  nor  sex,  but  devoting  all  to  indiscrim- 
inate slaughter,  and  by  his  own  example  stimulat- 
ing the  barbarian  ferocity  and  cruelty  of  his  savage 
«;«mpeers.  (See  Jefferson's  works,  vol.  1st,  appen- 
dix A.) 

I  have  myself  been  ii  med  by  some  of  the 
^^ ancient  inhabitants'^  of  the  Post,  long  since  gath- 
ered to  their  fathers,  but  who  were  old  enough  at 
the  time  of  Clark's  capture  of  the  Post,  to  recol- 
lect the  circumstances  attending  it,  that  after  the 
surrender,  the  English  flag  was  kept  flying,  and 
that  from  the  large  stores  of  clothing  on  hand,  Clark 
<lressed  some  of  his  men  in  red,  the  uniform  of  the 
British  soldiers,  and  placing  a  sentry  with  British 
imiform  at  the  gate  of  the  fort,  after  directing  the 
French  inhabitants  to  give  no  intimation  of  the 
surrender,  awaited  the  arrival  of  the  Indians,  who 
were  on  one  of  their  murderous  forays  to  the  south- 
side  of  the  Ohio,  and  were  to  return  to  Vincennes  to 
join  Hamilton  in  his  meditated  campaign  in  the  Illi- 
nois, for  the  purpose  of  attacking  Clark  and  his  troops 
at  Kaskaskia.  Sullen  and  silent,  with  the  scalp-lock 
of  his  victims  hanging  at  his  girdle,  and  in  full  ex- 
pectation of  his  reward  from  Hamilton,  the  unwary 
savage,  unconscious  of  danger,  and  wholly  ignorant 
of  the  change  that  had  been  eflfected  in  his  absence, 
passed  the  supposed  British  sentry  at  the  gate  of 
the  fort,  without  enquiry  or  molestation.  But  the 
moment  he  had  entered,  a  volley  from  the  rifles  of 
a  platoon  of  Clark's  men,  drawn  up  and  awaiting 
his  coming,  pierced  their  hearts,  and  sent  the 
unconscious  savage,  reeking  with  murder,  to  that 


HAMILTON. 


m 


4 

I 


n 


tribunal  to  which  he  had  so  frequently,  by  order  of 
Hamilton  sent  his  American  captives,  from  the 
infant  in  the  cradle,  to  the  grandfather  of  the  fam- 
ily, tottering  with  age  and  infirmity.  It  was  a  just 
retributimi,  and  few  men  but  Clark  would  have 
planned  the  ruie,  or  carried  it  out  so  successfully. 
It  is  reported  that  upwards  of  fifty  Indians  met  this 
fate  within  the  walls  of  "Fort  Sackville"  after  its 
surrender  by  Hamilton.  It  is  easy  to  judge  what 
must  have  been  the  feelings  of  the  "  Hair-Buyer 
General,"  who  was  in  the  fort  a  prisoner,  and  no 
doubt  a  witness  of  these  transactions. 

Mr.  Jefferson,  then  Grovernor  of  Virginia,  having 
in  his  possession  these  three  prominent  sulyjects  of  his 
Britanic  majesty,  captured  by  American  enterprise 
and  valor  unequalled  in  any  campaign  during  our 
revolutionary  contest,  was  well  aware  of  the  atroci- 
ties committed  by  them,  and  by  their  Indian  allies, 
on  our  western  frontiers  by  their  orders.  And  sen- 
sible as  he  was  that  acts  of  kindness  and  generosity  to 
the  vanquished,  had  been  met  on  the  part  of  the 
enemy  by  continued  and  wanton  outrages — by  con- 
duct towards  the  American  prisoners,  who  fell  into 
the  hands  of  their  opponents,  at  variance  with 
every  law  human  and  divine,  and  contrary  to  every 
rule  exercised  and  acted  upon  by  civilized  nations — 
he  determined  to  try  the  force  of  example.  He  ac- 
cordingly issued  an  order,  by  advice  of  his  council, 
directing  that  Hamilton,  Dejean  and  Lamothe 
"should  be  put  in  irons— confined  in  a  dungeon — 
deprived  of  the  use  of  pen,  ink  and  paper,  and  ex- 
cluded from  all  conversation  except  with  their  keep- 


M 


w 


70 


APPENDIX. 


I  *. 


•:'•■■■ 


ill 


if . 

■1" 


er."  Maj.  General  Phillips,  second  in  command 
under  Burgoyne  at  his  capture,  and  who  himself 
was  then  a  prisoner  of  war,  on  pai'ole  in  the  vicinity 
of  Charlottesville,  on  hearing  of  the  order  imme- 
diately remonstrated.  In  his  letter  to  Mr.  Jeifer- 
son  in  regard  to  this  order,  he  "endeavored  to  in. 
validate  the  testimony  against  Hamilton — expres- 
sed great  doubts  whether  any  sinf/le  State  of  the 
Confederacy  had  authority  to  make  an  order  of 
retaliation,  asserting  that  Congress  alone  possessed 
the  power — dwelt  largely  on  the  sacred  nature  of 
capitulation,  which,  in  the  case  of  the  prisoners,  he 
contended  exempted  them  from  the  severe  punish- 
ment awarded,  whatever  their  previous  conduct 
might  have  been,  and  finally  wound  up  in  the  fol- 
lowing flattering  appeal .  "That  from  his  (Phillips,) 
residence  in  Virginia  he  had  conceived  the  most 
favorable  idea  of  the  gentlemen  of  this  country,  and 
from  his  personal  acquaintance  with  Mr.  Jefferson, 
he  was  led  to  imagine  it  must  have  been  very  dis- 
sonant to  his  feelings,  to  inflict  such  a  weight  of 
misery  and  stigma  of  disgrace  upon  the  unfortunate 
gentlemen  in  question."  Whatever  Mr.  Jefl*erson's 
private  feelings  may  have  been — and  no  one  knew 
better  than  Gen.  Phillips  what  they  were — ^he  had 
a  duty  to  perform,  which  required  in  this  case  a 
stern  subordination  of  them  to  the  service  of  his 
country,  and  the  good  of  mankind.  There  could 
be  no  better  principle  of  international  law  settled 
and  acknowledged,  than  that  all  persons  taken  in 
war — ^>vhether  their  surrender  was  by  capitulation 
or  by  discretion — ^were,  by  all  the  rules  of  war,  j^ria- 


HAMILTON. 


71 


oners,  and  liable  to  the  same  treatment— except, 
only  so  far  as  they  were  protected  by  the  express 
terms  of  capitulation.  In  the  surrender  of  Hamil- 
ton, no  such  exception  was  made — ^the  terms  of  it 
are  set  forth  in  the  address,  to  which  these  notes  are 
appended.  In  signing  his  capitulation,  Hamilton 
had  set  out  a  flourish  of  reasons,  it  is  true:  "Re- 
moteness of  succor — the  state  of  his  prisoners — un- 
animitij  of  his  officers  and  men,  in  advising  a  sur- 
render;" and  last,  but  not  least,  "the  honwahk 
terms  allowed,  and  his  confidence  in  a  generous  en- 
emy." What  these  honorable  terms  were,  the  reader 
will  ascertain  readily,  by  reading  the  address  in 
which  they  are  set  out.  They  were  simply  those 
granted  in  case  of  an  unconditional  surrender.  No 
exceptions  whatever  were  made,  and  Mr.  Jefferson 
continued  in  the  belief  that  the  capitulation  did  not 
exempt  Hamilton  and  his  associates  from  confine- 
ment. In  a  national  point  of  mew,  however,  his 
conduct,  it  was  feared,  might  be  questioned,  and  his 
high  sense  of  propriety  induced  him  to  submit  the 
question  to  the  Commander-in-Chief.  Gen.  Wash- 
ington approved  of  his  conduct,  but  with  his  great 
prudence,  having  some  doubts  as  to  the  real  bearing 
and  extent  of  the  terms  of  the  capitulation,  and 
having  a  sacred  respect  for  the  laws  and  usages  of 
nations,  he  recommended  to  Mr.  Jefferson  a  relax- 
ation  of  the  severities  imposed  on  the  captives. 
After  a  fair  trial  of  the  effect  of  the  proceeding  in 
ameliorating  the  condition  of  the  American  prison- 
ers, then  in  the  hands  of  our  enemies,  a  serious 
warning  would  be  given  to  the  British  Government 


111; 


:),'  nn 


APPENDIX. 


i'£mi 


3 


;?)». 


i 


by  the  act  in  question,  Virginia  would  hare  it  in 
her  power  to  repeat  it.  Reformation  might  be  pro- 
duced, and  then  the  necessity  of  individual  chas- 
tisement for  na^io?ial  barbarities  removed.  This 
advice  of  the  "Father  of  his  Country."  accorded 
well  with  the  better  dictates  of  Mr.  Jefferson's 
heart,  and  without  compromising  the  right,  he 
issued  a  second  order  of  council,  mitigating  the 
severity  of  the  first.  A  parole  was  drawn  up  and 
tendered  to  Hamilton  and  his  fellow-prisoners.  It 
required  them  to  ^'^  inoffensive  in  word  and  deed. 
To  this  they  objected,  insisting  on  abusing  the  Reb- 
els as  much  as  they  pleased  verhally.  They  were 
remanded  to  their  prison ;  but  with  their  irons  re- 
moved. Dejean  and  Lamothe  soon  after  subscribed 
the  parole,  but  Hamilton  remained  obstinate ;  but 
upon  being  informed  by  General  Phillips,  who  had 
been  exchanged,  that  his  further  confinement  would 
be  entirely  gratuitmis,  he  finally  with  great  reluc- 
timce  yielded.  These  stern  but  necessary  meas- 
ures, had  the  desired  effect  in  time.  At  first  the 
British  threatened  retaliation  in  the  severest  mode. 
They  issued  a  proclamation  "That  no  oftieers  of  the? 
Virginia  line  should  be  exchanged,  until  Hamilton's 
affair  should  be  settled  satisfactorily."  Wiien  this 
was  received,  Mr.  Jefferson  at  once  ordered  all  ex- 
change of  British  prisoner's  to  be  stopped,  with  a 
determination  expressed,  to  use  them  as  pledges  for 
the  safety  of  the  American  prisoners  in  the  hands 
of  the  enemy.  The  practical  applicp.tion,  however, 
of  such  a  k^son  had  its  effect  upon  the  enemy  dur- 
ing the  subsequent  progress  of  the  war.    British 


HAMILTON. 


73 


pretension  was  finally  forced  to  yield  to  the  cries  of 
their  own  countrymen,  and  the  admonitions  of  ex- 
perience. What  ultimately  became  of  this  trio  of 
distinguished  officials,  I  have  never  been  able  to 
ascertain.  It  is  more  than  probable  that  before  the 
close  of  the  war,  they  were  exchanged  for  much 
better  men.  They  probably  all  three  returned  to 
Canada — Hamilton  it  is  certain  did.  He  was  at 
Quebec  after  the  peace  in  1783,  as  Lieut.  Governor, 
disposing  of  American  property,  without  a  shadow  of 
right  to  do  so,  to  British  subjects,  as  late  as  the  year 
1785.  For  in  the  examination  of  the  claims  to 
lots  granted  at  Detroit,  made  by  the  United  States 
Commissioners  in  1806,  we  find  among  their  entries 
the  following: 

"QuEBECK,  Sept.  9th,  1785. 

Whereas,  Matthew  Elliot  has  for  some  time  occu- 
pied a  certain  lot,  lying  near  the  dock  yard  at  Detroit, 
by  the  water-side,  this  is  to  signify  to  all  whom  it 
may  concern,  that  if  any  person  has  pretensions  to 
the  aforesaid  lot,  they  are  to  produce  the  titles;  oth^ 
erwise,  the  said  Matthew  Elliot  is  to  hold  peaceable 
possession  thereof,  until  further  orders. 

Given  under  my  hand,  and  seal  at  arms,  at  the 
Castle  of  St.  Louis. 

HENRY  HAMILTON, 

(American  State  papers,  vol.  1  p.  256.) 

Now,  this  authority  of  Gov.  Hamilton  to  Matr 
thew  Elliot,  (given  under  his  ^^ seal-at-armsj  at  the 
Castle  of  St.  Louis,'')  to  hold  possession  of  American 
soil,  "until  further  orders,"  is  decidedly  rich,  and 
perfectly  characteristic  of  Henry  Hamilton,  the 


..  fj 


1 

It 


.1 


74 


APPENDIX. 


'*  Hair-Buyer  General' ' .  For  it  will  be  remembered 
by  all  readers  of  history,  that  two  years  before  the 
date  of  that  grant  his  master,  the  King  of  Great 
Britain,  relinquished  by  the  treaty  of  peace  in  1783, 
"all  claims  to  the  government,  property,  and  terri- 
torial rights  of  the  United  States  to  the  people  there- 
of y^^  and  in  this  grant  was  conceded  all  the  "terri- 
torial rights  of  Great  Britain  to  Detroit  as  well  as 
the  whole  of  Michigan."  There  is  no  doubt  that 
in  his  hatred  of  every  thing  American,  he  died 
gam;  but  when  or  where,  we  are  ignorant.  The 
tacts  above  stated  are  derived  from  Rayner's  Life  of 
Mr.  -Jeiferson — a  work  extremely  rare,  but  the  best 
life  of  Jefferson  extant. 


III. 

TECUMSEH. 

We  should  fail  in  our  duty  as  historian  of  the  "Old 
Post,"  if  we  omitted  to  notice  an  individual  who 
has  played  an  important  part  in  the  history  of  the 
North- Western  Territory,  especially  in  the  cam- 
paign of  181 2-' 13,  on  our  North- Western  frontiers. 
The  reader  will  at  once  understand  that  the  indi- 
vidual alluded  to,  is  the  one  whose  name  heads  this 
article.  For  all  those  qualities  which  elevate  man 
far  above  his  race;  for  talent,  tact,  skill,  bravery  as 
a  warrior ;  for  high-minded,  honorable  and  chival- 
rous bearing  as  a  man;  in  fine,  for  all  those  ole- 


\ 


APPENDIX. 


76 


ments  of  greatness  which  place  him  a  long  way 
above  his  fellows  in  savage  life,  the  name  and  fame 
of  Tecumseh  will  go  down  to  posterity  in  the  West, 
as  one  of  the  most  celebrated  of  the  Aborigines  of 
this  continent.  As  one  who  on  this  side  of  the  Al- 
leghanies  at  least,  had  no  equal  among  the  tribes 
who  dwelt  in  the  country  watered  by  the  Mississippi 
and  its  confluents.  Such  was  the  opinion  of  those 
who  knew  him  when  he  died,  and  such  is  now,  I 
believe,  the  opinion  of  the  majority  of  the  four  or 
five  million  of  inhabitants  who  people  the  region 
occupied  by  the  tribes,  which  once  acknowledged 
his  supremacy. 

The  tribe  to  which  he  belonged  was  the  Shaw- 
N(E.  The  tradition  of  the  nation  held,  that  they 
originally  came  from  the  Gulf  of  Mexico;  that  they 
wended  their  way  up  the  Mississippi  and  the  Ohio, 
and  settled  at  or  near  the  present  site  of  Shawnee' 
tmvn^  from  whence  they  removed  to  the  Upper 
Wabash.  Be  this  as  it  may,  they  were  found  on 
the  Wabash  early  in  the  eighteenth  century,  when 
the  French  took  possession  of  the  country,  and 
were  known  and  esteemed  as  the  ^^  bravest  of  the 
brave.^^  This  triba  has  uniformly  been  the  bitter 
enemies  of  the  white  man,  and  in  every  contest 
with  our  people  have  shown  a  skill  and  strategy 
that  made  them  a  most  dangerous  foe.  In  everj 
battle-lield  in  the  !N  orth- Western  Territory,  pre- 
vious to  and  during  the  war  of  eighteen  hundred 
and  twelve,  the  Shawnoes  wjere  found  in  the  ranks 
of  our  enemies.  From  the  attack  on  Fort  Harri- 
son, then  garrisoned  with  the  troops  under  the  com- 


w 


76 


APPENDIX. 


Ifp^ 


m. 


mand  of  Captain  Taylor,  subsequently  the  hero  of 
"Palo  Alto  andRessaca  de  laPalma,"  and  President 
of  the  United  States,  down  to  the  battle  of  Tippe- 
canoe in  1811,  where  General  Harrison  commanded 
the  American  forces;  at  Fort  Meigs;  at  the  River 
Raisin;  in  line,  in  every  engagement  where  the 
American  and  British  troops,  met  in  hostile  array 
the  war-whoop  of  the  Shawnoe  was  heard  above 
the  din  of  the  battle-field,  and  his  unerring  rifle 
carried  the  message  of  death  to  many  of  the  bra- 
vest of  our  countrymen.  Of  the  early  history  of 
this  warrior,  of  course,  but  little  can  be  known. 
Related  as  he  was  to  the  "Prophet,"  the  head  chief 
of  the  Shaw  noes,  and  possessing  the  skill  and  brav- 
ery which  all  acknowledge,  his  tact  and  talent, 
added  to  his  position  in  the  tribe,  must  have  early 
given  him  power  and  influence  with  them,  such  as 
no  other  chieftain  ever  possessed  over  the  children 
of  the  forest.  At  what  period  of  his  life  he  made 
his  first  appearance  at  Vincennes,  is  also  unknown. 
Most  probably  from  boyhood  he  had  been  accus- 
tomed to  visit  it,  inasmuch  as  the  tribes  dwelling 
on  the  Wabash  were  in  the  constant  habit  of  going 
there,  either  for  the  sale  of  their  property,  or  the 
more  important  purpose  of  holding  a  Council.  Vin- 
cennes in  the  early  part  of  the  present  century, 
being  the  place  where  treaties  were  made  and 
Councils  held,  with  all  the  nations  of  Indians  dwell- 
ing between  the  Lakes  and  the  Ohio.  A  brother  of 
the  ^^ Prophet,"  who  had  an  immense  influence,  spir- 
itual and  temporal,  with  the  Indians  not  only  of  his 
own  tribe,  the  Shawnoes,  but  with  the  other  tribes 


(1 


TECUMSEH. 


77 


residing  on  the  waters  of  the  Upper  Wabash.  Who, 
like  the  founder  of  Mormonism,  not  only  held  direct 
(jommimication  with  the  "Great  Spirit,"  but  whose 
oracles,  like  those  of  the  Sybils,  were  held  by  the 
untutored  son  of  the  forest  as  worthy  of  all  cre- 
flence,  he  must  from  this  circumstance  alone,  have 
held  a  high  position  in  his  tribe.  It  is,  however, 
doubtful  whether  Tecumseh  himself  was  gulled  by 
the  charlatanry  of  his  brother.  His  own  natural 
good  sense  must  have  taught  him,  however,  that 
whatever  his  own  private  opinion  might  have  been 
on  this  subject,  policy  would  seem  to  require  that 
lie  should  not  divulge  it.  Well  instructed  in  Indian 
character,  he  knew  full  well  tYifit  fanaticism  was  one 
of  the  strongest  impulses  to  reckless  bravery  and 
daring.  For  if  the  follower  of  Mahomet,  wound- 
ed and  dying  on  the  battle-field,  in  defence  of  his 
country  and  his  faith,  believed  he  went  to  the  full 
enjoyment  of  "Houries  and  Sherbert"  in  the  seventh 
lieaven  of  the  Mahomedan  creed,  the  no  less  in- 
fatuated Shawnee  would  seek  danger  and  death  in 
liis  contest  with  the  "pale  face,"  with  the  firm  belief 
that  his  departure  from  this  world  would  usher  him 
at  once  into  the  hunting  grounds  of  the  next.  Born 
to  command  himself,  he  used  all  appliances  that 
would  stimukte  the  courage  and  nerve  the  valor  of 
his  followers.  Always  in  the  front  rank  of  battle 
himself  with  his  enemies,  the  whites,  his  followers 
blindly  folhtwed  his  lead,  and  as  his  war-cry  rang 
rkar  above  the  din  and  noise  of  the  battle-field,  the 
Sha  mjd  ii*rriors  as  they  rushed  on  to  victory,  or 
the  ^ave.  rallied  ii  round  him — "foemen  worthy  of 


TT 


78 


APPENDIX. 


the  steel"  of  the  most  gallant  soldier  that  ever  en- 
tered the  lists  in  defence  of  his  altar  or  his  home. 

The  "Battle  of  the  Thames,"  in  which  he  fell 
fighting  single-handed^  with  the  gallant  leader  of  one 
of  the  most  distinguished  corps  of  that  bloody  field, 
and  to  whose  pistol  shot,  if  all  history  of  that  hard- 
fought  fight  and  glorious  victory  is  to  be  credited, 
he  owed  his  death,  and  ended  his  career,  bears  wit- 
ness to  his  skill  and  courage.  It  is  not,  however, 
with  his  acts  for  good  or  evil  elsewhere,  that  I  pro- 
pose to  speak  of  him.  It  is  only  of  the  incidents 
connected  with  his  life  while  residing  in  the /rt(Z/«wa 
Territory^  and  possessing  even  then  a  control  and  in- 
fluence over  his  own  tribe,  and  the  tribes  that  sur- 
rounded it,  which  no  Prophet,  Warrior  or  Priest 
ever  held  on  this  continent,  over  the  aborigines  of 
the  country,  from  the  time  of  Phillip  of  Karragan- 
sett,  down  to  that  of  the  most  distinguished  of  the 
Indian  Chieftains  of  our  time,  that  I  propose  to 
speak. 

It  is  well  known  to  those  who  have  paid  the 
slightest  attention  to  our  colonial  history  in  the 
early  part  of  the  present  century,  that  it  was  the 
ardent  wish,  the  deep-seated  thought  and  burning 
desire  of  Tecumseh,  to  sever  the  tribes  whom  he 
could  influence,  (who  then  held  possession  of  all 
the  country  from  the  old  boundary  line,  about  twen- 
ty miles  above  Vincennes,  to  Lake  Michigan,)  from 
any  connexion  with  the  whites — then  commencing 
the  first  settlement  of  the  country,  and  but  few  in 
number.  His  object  was,  and  openly  and  boldly 
avowed,  to  form  a  confederacy  of  the  Indian  tribes, 


TECUMSEH. 


79 


not  only  north,  but  south;  not  only  of  the  Shaw- 
noes,  the  Miamies  and  the  Pottawatomies  of  the 
Wabash  and  the  Illinois;  but  the  Creeks,  Chero- 
kees  and  Chickasaws  of  the  Mississippi.    To  make 
an  alliance  with  every  tribe  from  Lake  Erie  to  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico;  a  league  offensive  and  defensive  as 
against  the  whites,  and  to  expel  from  the  country- 
all  who  dwelt  on  the  north-west  side  of  the  river 
Ohio,  or  who  were  residents  on  the  south-side  of  the 
same  river  below  the  mouth  of  the  Cumberland. 
The  principle  with  which  he  started  out,  was  one 
which  would  have  great  weight  with  the  native 
tribes  of  th3  country,  and  one  which,  whatever  we 
may  say  to  the  contrary,  carried  with  it  a  gi'eat 
semblance  of  right  and  justice,  so  far,  at  least,  as 
Indians  were  concerned.    The  principle  was  this: 
that  the  "Great  Spirit"  had  created  the  distinction 
between  the  "palefaces"  and  the  "aborigines"  of 
the  country,  with  a  view  of  keeping  them  apart  as 
two  distinct  races.     To  the  Indians  he  had  given 
the  Great  West.     Here  he  had  established  their 
hunting  grounds:  the  mountain  and  the  valley — 
the  hill  and  the  prairie — ^the  forest  and  the  rivers 
were  theirs.     He  had  furnished  the  forest  and  the 
prairie  with  the  Buffalo,  the  Deer  and  the  Elk  for 
their  sustenance;  their  skins  for  their  robes;  their 
flesh  for  their  food;  the  waters  of  the  rivers  and 
lakes  he  had  abundantly  stocked  with  fish.     The 
Indians  never  were,  and  never  would  be  fitted  for 
agriculture.      They  were    warriors  and  hunters. 
When  game  was  scarce  they  hunted  one  another. 
That  from  tlie  day  of  Nimrod  to  the  present,  such 


H  Mf 


^  J  ;■ 


■^ll": 


i 


H§ 


mw 


i?l^'  :-  Vfe 


^  ;^  .*.> 


TECUHSEH. 

liad  been  the  destiny  of  the  "red  man."  The  con- 
sequence must  be  that  there  could  be  no  fraterniza- 
tion, no  affiliation  with  the  white  man.  That  when 
lie  came  here  he  was  an  interloper,  a  trespasser  on 
their  rights,  an  intruder  on  their  soil,  and  must  be 
expelled.  That,  as  the  necessary  resul  t  of  all  this, 
they  must  drive  him  off  fi'om  their  hunting  grounds, 
which  he  had  seized  unlawfully  and  unjustly,  and 
was  cultivating  for  himself  and  those  who  were  to 
come  after  him.  That  it  was  a  death-struggle  be- 
tween the  white  man  and  the  red,  and  that  now  while 
the  whites  were  sparse  in  population,  weak  in  num- 
bers, and  wanting  in  strength,  was  the  time  to  strike 
the  blow,  and  if  possible,  exterminate  the  race,  who 
already  were  encroaching  upon  the  Indian  territory, 
where  if  a  foot-hold  was  ever  obtained,  it  would 
be  difficult  to  remove  them.  How  far  the  views  of 
Tecumseh  were  right,  let  the  history  of  the  West 
for  the  last  half  century  answer.  Their  progress, 
like  that  of  the  buifalo,  has  been  westward.  The 
waters  of  the  Pacific  will  alone  stay  their  march, 
and  the  last  war-whoop  of  the  Indian  on  this  conti- 
nent, as  he  makes  his  final  struggle  with  his  impla- 
cable foe,  the  white  man,  will  mingle  with  the  roar 
of  the  ocean,  as  it  rolls  its  breakers  upon  the  rocks 
and  head-lands,  which  form  the  last  barrier  to  the 
further  progress  of  either  race  towards  the  setting 
sun.  A  fitting  requiem  for  the  last  of  a  people  who 
once  lorded  it,  fi'om  the  St.  Lawrence  to  the  Colum- 
bia, from  Lake  Superior  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico. 

Another  principle  which  he  advocated,  and  which 
at  least  has  some  plausibility,  was  thii 


((. 


TW 


TECUMSEH. 


81 


Great  Spirit  had  given  the  Indians  all  their  lands  in 
common,  to  be  held  by  them  as  such,  and  not  by  the 
various  tribes  who  had  settled  on  portions  of  it- 
claiming  it  as  their  own.  That  they  were  mere  squat- 
ters, having  no  ^^pre-emption  riylit^^  but  holding  even 
that,  on  which  they  lived  as  mere  "tenants  in  com- 
mon" with  all  the  other  tribes.  That  this  mere 
possession  gave  them  no  title  to  convey  the  land 
without  the  consent  of  all.  That  no  single  tribe  had 
the  right  to  sell,  that  the  power  to  sell  was  not  invest- 
ed in  their  Chjef\  but  must  be  the  act  of  the  War* 
riors,  in  council  assembled  of  all  the  tribes,  as  the 
land  belonged  to  all — no  portion  of  it  to  any  single 
tribe.  Hence,  in  all  the  councils  which  he  held  with 
the  whites,  he  uniformly  refused,  as  did  his  tribe, 
until  after  his  death,  to  acknowledge  the  validity  of 
any  treaty  made  between  the  Indians  and  the  Gov- 
ernment, utterly  denying  the  power  of  one  or  more 
tribes  of  Indians  to  convey  the  land  they  occupied 
without  the  consent  of  all. 

In  the  Spring  of  1810,  General  Harrison  being 
Governor  of  the  north-western  Territory,  and  resid- 
ing at  Vinccnnes — the  seat  of  Government — had 
learned  from  various  quarters  that  Tecumseh  had 
been  visiting  the  different  Indian  tribes,  scattered 
along  the  Valleys  of  the  Wabash  and  Illinois,  with 
a  view  of  forming  an  alliance  and  making  common 
cause  against  the  whites,  and  that  there  was  great 
probability  that  his  mission  had  been  successful. 
Aware,  as  he  was,  that  if  this  was  the  case,  and  that 
if  the  combination  had  been  formed,  such  as  was  rep- 
resented, the  settlements  in  the  southern  portion  of 


82 


APPENDIX. 


Indiana  and  Illinois  were  in  great  danger;  that 
Vincennes  itself  would  be  the  first  object  of  attack, 
and  that,  with  the  handfull  of  troops  in  the  Terri- 
tory, a  successful  resistance  might  not  be  made;  and 
not  probably  fully  aware  of  the  extent  of  the  or- 
ganization attempted  by  Tecumseh,  and  desirous  of 
avoiding,  if  he  could,  the  necessity  of  a  call  to  arms, 
he  sent  a  message  to  him,  then  residing  at  the  "Pro- 
phet*s  Town,"  inviting  him  to  a  council  to  be  held 
at  Vincennes  at  as  early  a  period  as  possible,  for  the 
purpose  of  talking  over  and  amicably  settling  all 
difficulties  which  might  exist  between  the  whites  and 
the  Shawnoes.  It  was  not  until  the  month  of  Au- 
gust,  of  the  same  year,  that  Tecumseh,  accompanied 
by  about  seventy  of  his  warriors,  made  his  appear- 
ance. They  encamped  on  the  banks  of  the  Wabash 
just  above  the  town,  and  Tecumseh  gave  notice  to 
the  General  that,  in  pursuance  of  his  invitation,  he 
had  come  to  hold  a  talk  "  with  him  and  his  braves." 
The  succeeding  day  was  appointed  for  the  meetings 
The  Governor  made  all  suitable  preparations  for  it. 
The  officers  of  the  territory  and  the  leading  citizens 
of  the  town  were  invited  to  be  present,  while  a  portion 
of  a  CO  mpany  of  militia  was  detailed  as  guard — ^fully 
armed  and  equipped  for  any  emergency.  Notice  had 
been  sent  to  Tecumseh  previous  to  the  meeting,  that 
it  was  expected  that  himself  and  only  a  portion  of 
his  principal  warriors,  would  bo  present  at  the  coun- 
cil. The  council  was  held  in  the  open  lawn  before 
the  Governor's  house,  in  a  grove  of  trees  which  then 
surrounded  it.  But  two  of  these,  I  regret  to  say,  are 
now  remaining.    At  the  time  appointed,  Tecumseh 


TECUMSEH. 


as 


and  some  fifteen  or  twenty  of  his  warriors  made 
their  appearance.    With  a  firm  and  elastic  step,  and 
with  a  proud  and  somewhat  defiant  look,  he  advanc- 
ed to  the  place  where  the  Governor  and  those  who 
had  been  invited  to  attend  the  conference  were  sit. 
ting.    This  place  had  been  fenced  in,  with  a  view  of 
preventing  the  crowd  from  encroaching  upon  the 
council  during  its  deliberations.    As  1    stopped  for. 
ward  he  seemed  to  scan  the  preparationo  which  had 
been  made  for  his  reception,  particularly  the  military 
part  of  it,  with  an  eye  of  suspicion— by  no  means, 
however,  with  fear      As  he  came  in  front  of  the 
dais,  an  elevated  ]       ion  of  the  place  upon  which 
the  r  )vernor  and  ^  u    )fficers  of  the  Territory  were 
seateu   tho  Govonn^riuvited  him,  through  his  inter- 
preter, to  come  forward  and  take  a  scat  with  him 
and  his  counsellor     [)remising  the  invitation  by  say- 
ing: "That  it  was  thr'  wish  of  their  'Gueat  Fath- 
er,' the  President  of  the  United  States,  that  he 
should  do  so."     The  Chief  paused  **  )r  a  moment, 
as  the  words  were  uttered  and  the  sentence  finish- 
ed, and  raising  his  tall  form  to  its  greatest  height, 
surveyed  the  troops  and  the  crowd  around  him. 
Then  with  his  keen  eyes  fixed  upon  the  Gover- 
nor for  a  single  moment,    and  turning  them  to 
the  sky  above,  with  his  sinewy  arm  pointing  towards 
the  heaven,  and  with  a  tone  and  manner  indicative 
of  supreme  contempt,  for  ihQ  paternity  assigned  himy 
said  in  a  voice  whose  clarion  tones  were  heard 
throughout  the  whole  assembly: 

^''My  Fatkeri'-^The  sun  is  my  father— -the  earth  is 
my  mother — and  on  her  bosom  I  will  recline." 


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84 


APPENDIX. 


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IN. 


II:  ^; 


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Having  finished,  he  stretchd  himself  with  his  war- 
riors on  the  green  sward.  The  effect,  it  is  said,  was 
electrical,  and  for  some  moments  there  was  a  per- 
fect silence. 

The  Governor,  throu^^h  the  interpreter,  then  in- 
formed him,  "that  he  had  understood  he  had  com- 
plaints to  make,  and  redress  to  ask  for  certain 
wrongs  which  he^  Tecuniseh,  supposed  had  been 
done  his  tribe,  as  well  as  the  others ;  that  he  felt 
disposed  to  listen  to  the  one,  and  make  satisfaction 
for  the  other,  if  it  was  proper  he  should  do  so. 
That  in  all  his  intercourse  and  negotiations  with  the 
Indians,  he  had  endeavored  to  act  justly  and  hon- 
orably with  them,  and  believed  he  had  done  so,  and 
had  heard  of  no  complaint  of  his  conduct  until  he 
learned  that  Tecumseh  was  endeavoring  to  create  dis- 
satisfaction towards  the  Government,  not  only 
among  the  Shawnoes,  but  among  the  other  tribes 
dwelling  on  the  Wabash  and  Illinois;  and  had,  in 
so  doing,  produced  a  great  deal  of  mischief  and 
trouble  between  them  and  the  whites,  by  averring 
that  the  tribes,  whose  land  the  Government  had 
lately  purchased,  had  no  right  to  sell,  nor  their 
chiefs  any  authority  to  convey.  That  he,  the  Gov- 
ernor, had  invited  him  to  attend  the  Council,  with  a 
view  of  learning  from  his  own  lips,  whether  there  was 
any  truth  in  the  reports  which  he  had  heard,  and  to 
learn  from  himself  whether  he,  or  his  tribe,  had 
any  cause  of  complaint  against  the  whites;  and  if  so, 
as  a  man  and  a  warrior,  openly  and  boldly  to  avow  it. 
That  as  between  himself  and  as  great  a  warrior  as  Te- 
cumseh, ^here  should  be  no  concealments-all  should 


TECUMSEH. 


85 


be  done  by  them  under  a  clear  sky^  and  in  an  open, path, 
and  with  these  feelings  on  his  own  part,  he  was  glad 
to  meet  him  in  council."  Tecumseh  arose  as  soon 
as  the  Governor  had  finished.  Those  who  knew  him 
speak  of  him  as  one  of  the  most  splendid  specimens 
of  his  tribe— celebrated  for  their  physical  propor- 
tions and  fine  forms,  even  among  the  nations  who 
surrounded  them.  Tall,  athletic  and  manly,  dig- 
nified, but  graceful,  he  seemed  the  beau  ideal  of  an 
Indian  Chieftain.  In  a  voice,  at  first  low,  but  with 
all  its  indistinctness,  musical,  he  commenced  his 
reply.  As  he  warmed  with  his  subject  his  clear 
tones  might  be  heard,  as  if  "trumpet-tongued,"  to 
the  utmost  limits  of  the  assembled  crowd  who  gath- 
ered around  him.  The  most  perfect  silence  prevail- 
ed, except  when  the  warriors  who  surrounded  him, 
gave  their  gutferal  assent  to  some  eloquent  recital  of 
the  red  man's  wrong,  and  the  white  man's  injustice. 
Well  instructed  in  the  traditions  of  his  tribe,  fully 
acquainted  with  their  history,  the  councils,  trea- 
ties, and  battles  of  the  two  races  for  half  a  cen- 
tury, he  recapitulated  the  wrongs  of  the  "red  man" 
from  the  massacre  of  the  "Moravian  Indians,"  dur- 
ing the  revolutionary  war,  down  to  the  period  he 
had  met  the  Governor  in  Council.  He  told  him  "he 
did  not  know  how  he  could  ever  again  be  the  friend 
of  the  white  man."  In  reference  to  the  public  do- 
main, he  asserted  "that  the  'Great  Spirit*  had 
given  all  the  country  from  the  Miami  to  the  Missis- 
sippi, from  the  Lakes  to  the  Ohio,  as  a  common  pro- 
petty  to  all  the  tribes  that  dwelt  within  those  bor- 
ders, and  that  the  land  could  not^  and  shmld  not  be 


1- 

i   t.  ■ 
l.f 


86 


APPENDIX. 


:«':■ 


fe'   ' 

ml 


sold  without  the  consent  of  all.  That  all  the  tribes 
on  the  continent  formed  but  one  nation.  That  if  the 
United  States  would  not  give  up  the  lands  they  had 
bought  of  the  Miamis,  the  Delawares,  the  Pottowat- 
omies,  and  other  tribes,  that  those  united  with  him 
were  determined  to  fall  on  those  tribes  and  annihi- 
late them.  That  they  were  determined  to  have  no 
more  Chiefs,  but  in  future  to  be  governed  by  their 
warriors.  That  unless  a  stop  was  put  to  the  further 
encroachment  of  the  whites,  the  fate  of  the  Indians 
was  sealed.  They  had  been  driven  from  the  banks 
of  the  Delaware  across  the  Alleghanies,  and  their 
possessions  on  the  Wabash  and  the  Illinois  were 
now  to  be  taken  from  them — that  in  a  few  years 
they  would  not  have  ground  enough  to  bury  their 
warriors  on  this  side  of  the  "Father  of  Waters." 
That  all  would  perish — all  their  possessions  taken 
from  them  by  fraud,  or  force,  unless  they  stopped 
the  progress  of  the  white  man  further  westward. 
That  it  must  tea  war  of  races  in  whi(h  ere  cr  the 
other  must  perish.  That  their  tribes  had  been  driv- 
en towards  the  setting  sun,  like  a  galloping  horse, 
("Ne-kat-a-cush-e  Ka-top-o-lin-tc")  That  for 
himself  and  his  warriors,  he  had  determined  to  re- 
sist all  further  aggressions  of  the  whites,  and  that 
with  his  consent,  or  that  of  the  Shaw  noes,  they 
should  never  acquire  another  foot  of  land."  To 
those  who  have  never  heard  the  Shawnee  language, 
I  may  here  remark,  it  is  the  most  musical  and  eu- 
phonious of  all  the  Indian  languages  of  the  West. 
When  spoken  rapidly  by  a  fluent  speaker,  it  sounds 
more  like  the  scanning  of  Greek  and  Latin  verse, 


m 


I 


TECUMSBH. 


87 


than  any  thing  else  I  can  compare  it  to.  The  effect 
of  this  address,  of  which  I  have  simply  given  the 
outlines,  and  which  occupied  an  hour  in  the  deliv- 
ery, may  be  readily  imagined. 

William  Henry  Harrison  was  as  brave  a  man  as 
ever  lived.  All  who  knew  him  will  acknowledge 
his  courage,  moral  and  physical,  but  he  was  wholly 
unprepared  for  such  a  speech  as  this.  There  was  a 
coolness,  an  independence,  a  defiance  in  the  whole 
manner  and  matter  of  the  Chieftain's  speech  which 
astonished  even  him.  He  knew  Tecumseh  well. 
He  had  learned  to  appreciate  his  high  qualities  as 
a  man  and  a  warrior.  He  knew  his  power,  his  skill? 
his  energy,  his  bravery.  He  knew  his  influence* 
not  only  over  his  own  tribe,  but  over  those  which 
dwelt  on  the  waters  of  the  Wabash  and  the  Illinois. 
He  knew  he  was  no  braggart — ^that  what  he  said  he 
meant — what  he  promised  he  intended  to  perform. 
He  was  fully  aware  that  he  was  a  foe  not  to  be  treat- 
ed lightly — ^an  enemy  to  be  conciliated,  not  scorned 
— one  to  be  met  with  kindness,  not  contempt. 
There  was  a  stillness  throughout  the  assembly  when 
Tecumseh  had  done  speaking,  which  was  painful. 
Kot  a  whisper  was  to  be  heard — all  eyes  were  turned 
from  the  speaker  to  the  Governor.  The  unwarrant- 
ed and  unwarrantable  pretensions  of  the  Chief,  and 
the  bold  and  defiant  tone  in  which  he  had  announc- 
ed them,  staggered  even  him.  It  was  some  mo- 
ments before  he  arose.  Addressing  Tecumseh,  who 
had  taken  his  seat  with  his  warriors,  he  said :  "  That 
the  charges  of  bad  faith  made  against  our  Govern- 
ment, and  the  assertion  that  injustice  had  been  done 


n 


i  ■! 


mp: 


\'!.'t  ^ 


88 


APPENDIX. 


the  Indians  in  any  treaty  ever  made,  or  any  council 
ever  held  with  them  by  the  United  States,  had  no 
tbundation  in  fact.     That  in  all  their  dealings  with 
the  red  men,  they  had  ever  been  governed  by  the 
strictest  rules  of  right  and  justice.     That  while 
other  civilized  nations  had  treated  them  with  con- 
tumely and  contempt,  ours  had  always  acted  in  good 
faith  with  them.     That  so  far  as  he  individually  was 
concerned,  he  could  say  in  the  presence  of  the  "Great 
Spirit "  who  was  watching  over  their  deliberations, 
that  his  conduct,  even  with  the  most  insignificant 
tribe,  had  been  marked  with  kindness,  and  all  his 
acts  governed  by  honor,  integrity  and  fair  dealing. 
That  he  had  uniformly  been  the  friend  of  the  red 
man,  and  that  it  was  the  first  time  in  his  life  that 
his  motives  had  been  questioned,  or  his  actions  im- 
peached.    It  was  the  first  time  in  his  life  that  he  had 
ever  heard  such  unfounded  claims  put  forth,  as  Te- 
cumseh  had  set  up,  by  any  Chief,  or  any  Indian, 
having  the  least  regard  for  truth,  or  the  slightest 
knowledge  of  the  intercourse  between  the  Indian 
and  the  white  man,  from  the  time  this  continent  was 
first  discovered."     What  the  Governor  had  said 
thus  far  had  been  interpreted  by  Barron,  the  inter- 
preter, to  the  Shawnoes ;  and  he  was  about  interpre- 
ting it  to  the  Miamis  and  Pottowatomies,  who  form- 
ed part  of  the  cavalcade,  when  Tecumseh  with  his 
warriors  sprang  to  their  feet,  brandishing  their  war- 
clubs  and  tomahawks.    "  Tell  him,"  said  Tecumseh, 
addressing  the  interpreter  in  Shawnee,  "he  lies!" 
Barron  who  had,  as  all  subordinates  (especially  in 
the  Indian  Department  have,)  a  great  reverence  and 


TECUMSEH. 


89 


respect  for  the  "powers  that  be,"  had  commenced 
interpreting  the  language  of  Teciimseh  to  the  Gov- 
ernor, but  not  exactly  in  the  terms  made  use  of, 
when  Tecumseh  who,  although  understanding  but 
little  English,  perceived  from  his  embarrassment 
and  awkwardness,  that  he  was  not  giving  his  words, 
interrupted  him  and  again  addressed  him  in  Shaw- 
nee, said:  "No,  no;  tell  him  he  lies."  The  gut- 
teral  assent  of  his  party  showed  they  coincided  with 
their  Chief's  opinion.  General  Gibson,  Secretary 
of  the  Territory,  who  understood  Shawnee,  had 
not  been  an  inattentive  spectator  of  the  scene,  and 
understanding  the  import  of  the  language  made  use 
of,  and  from  the  excited  state  of  Tecumseh  and  his 
party,  was  apprehensive  of  violence,  made  a  signal 
to  the  troops  in  attendance  to  shoulder  their  arms, 
and  advance.  They  did  so.  The  speech  of  Tecum- 
seh was  literally  interpreted  to  the  Governor.  He 
directed  Barron  to  sav  to  him,  "^e  7vould  hold  no 
farther  council  with  him"  and  the  meeting  broke  up. 
One  can  hardly  imagine  a  more  exciting  scene — 
one  which  would  be  a  finer  subject  for  an  "  Historical 
Painting"  to  adorn  the  rotunda  of  the  Capitol, 
around  which  not  a  single  picture,  commemorative 
of  Western  history  is  to  be  found.  On  the  succeed- 
ing day,  Tecumseh  requested  another  interview  with 
the  Governor,  which  was  granted,  on  condition,  that 
he  should  make  an  apology  to  the  Governor  for  his 
language  the  day  before.  This  he  made  through 
the  interpreter.  Measures  for  defence  and  protec- 
tion were  however  taken,  lest  there  should  be 
another  outbreak.    Two  companies  of  militia  were 


90 


APPKNDIX. 


'i 


h 


ordered  from  the  country,  and  the  one  in  town  added 
to  them,  while  the  Governor  and  his  friends  went 
into  council  fully  armed  and  prepared  for  any  con- 
tingency. The  conduct  of  Tecumseh  upon  this  occa- 
sion was  entirely  diiferent  from  that  of  the  day  be- 
fore. Firm  and  intrepid,  showing  not  the  slightest 
fear  or  alarm,  surrounded  as  he  was  with  a  mili- 
tary force,  quadrupeling  his  own,  he  preserved  the 
utmost  composure  and  equanimity.  No  one  could 
have  discerned  from  his  looks,  although  he  must 
have  fully  understood  the  object  of  calling  in  the 
troops,  that  he  was  in  the  slighest  degree  discon- 
certed. He  was  cautious  in  his  bearing,  dignified  in 
his  manner,  and  no  one  from  observing  him  would 
for  a  moment  have  supposed  he  was  the  principal 
actor  in  the  thrilling  scene  of  the  previous  day. 

In  the  interval  between  the  sessions  of  the  first 
and  second  council,  Tecumseh  had  told  Barron,  the 
interpreter,  "that  he  had  been  informed  by  the 
whites^  that  the  people  of  the  territory  were  almost 
equally  divided,  half  in  favor  of  Tecumseh  and  the 
other  adhering  to  the  Governor."  The  same  state- 
ment he  made  in  council.  He  said  "that  two  Amer- 
icans had  made  him  a  visit,  one  in  the  course  of  the 
preceding  winter,  the  other  lately,  and  informed 
him  that  Governor  ilarrison  had  purchased  land 
from  the  Indians  without  any  authority  from  the 
Government,  and  that  one-half  ot  the  people  of  the 
territory  were  opposed  to  the  purchase.  He  also 
told  the  Governor,  that  he  Harrison,  had  but  two 
years  more  to  remain  in  office,  and  that  if  he^  Te- 
cumseh could  prevail  upon  the  Indians  who  sold 


m 


TECUMSEH. 


n 


the  lands,  not  to  receive  their  annuities  for  that  time, 
that  when  the  Governor  was  displaced,  as  he  would 
bey  and  a  good  man  appointed  as  his  successor,  he 
would  restore  to  the  Indians  all  the  lands  purchas- 
ed from  them."  After  Tecumseh  had  concluded 
his  speech,  a  Wyandot,  a  Kickapoo,  a  Pattawato- 
mie,  an  Ottowa,  and  a  Winnebago  Chief,  severally 
spoke,  and  declared  that  their  tribes  had  entered 
into  the  "Shawn(e  Confederacy,"  and  would  sui> 
port  the  principles  laid  down  by  Tecumseh,  whom 
they  had  appointed  their  leader. 

At  the  conclusion  of  the  council,  the  Governor 
informed  Tecumseh  "that  he  would  immediately 
transmit  his  speech  to  the  President,  and  as  soon  as 
his  answer  was  received,  would  send  it  to  him ;  but 
as  a  person  had  been  appointed  to  run  the  boundary 
line  of  the  new  purchase,  he  wished  to  know  wheth- 
er there  would  be  any  danger  in  his  proceeding  to 
run  the  line."  Tecumseh  replied  "that  he  and  his 
allies  were  determined  that  the  old  boundary  line 
should  continue,  and  that  if  the  whites  crossed  it,  it 
would  be  at  their  peril."  The  Governor  replied, 
"that  since  Tecumseh  had  been  thus  candid  in  stat- 
ing his  determination,  he  would  be  equally  so  with 
him.  The  President,  he  was  convinced,  would 
never  allow  that  the  lands  on  the  Wabash,  were  the 
property  of  any  other  tribes  than  those  who  had  oc- 
cupied them,  and  lived  on  them  since  the  white  peo- 
ple tirst  came  to  America.  And  as  the  title  to  the 
lands  lately  purchased,  was  derived  from  those 
tribes  by  fair  purchase,  he  might  rest  assured  tliat 
the  right  of  the  United  States  would  be  supported 
by  the  sword" 


^iir 


92 


APPENDIX. 


m  ;; 


I  i- 


'   ■ 

ft :. 


f 


"  So  BE  IT,"  was  the  stern  and  haughty  reply  of 
the  "Shawnee  Chieftain,"  as  he  and  his  braves  took 
leave  of  the  Governor  and  wended  their  way  in  In- 
dian file  to  their  camping  ground.  And  thus  ended 
the  last  conference  on  earth  between  the  chivalrous 
and  gallant  Tecumseh,  the  Shawnee  Chief,  and  he 
who,  since  the  period  alluded  to,  has  ruled  the  des- 
tinies of  the  nation  as  its  Chief  Magistrate.  The 
bones  of  the  first  lie  bleaching  on  the  battle-field  of 
the  Thames — those  of  the  last  are  deposited  in  the 
mausoleum  that  covers  them,  on  the  banks  of  the 
Ohio.  Each  struggled  for  the  mastery  of  their 
race.  Each,  no  doubt,  equally  honest  and  patriotic 
in  their  purposes.  The  weak  yielded  to  the  strong 
— the  defenceless  to  the  powerful,  and  the  hunting- 
ground  of  the  Shawnee,  not  only  on  the  Wabash, 
but  the  Kansas,  (where  the  small  remnant  of  their 
tribe  has  been  expatriated.)  is  giving  place  to  the 
field  of  the  husbandman — their  tomahawks  convert- 
ed into  plough-shares,  and  in  a  few  years  more  the 
race  will  be  extinct.  Such  is  the  inevitable  destiny 
of  the  red  man  on  this  continent.  Tribe  after 
tribe,  nation  after  nation,  are  passing  away.  So 
that  in  a  few  years  their  very  name  and  existence 
will  be  unknown.  And  while  the  pseitdo  philan- 
thropist busies  himself  with  the  wrongs,  real  or  sup- 
posed, of  the  negro,  he  has  not  a  tear  to  shed  over 
the  utter  and  entire  destruction  of  a  race,  to  whose 
kindness  and  hospitality  to  his  ancestors,  he  owes 
his  very  existence  as  an  American  citizen.  Will- 
iam Penn  says  "no  Quaker  blood  ever  soiled  the 
tomahawk  of  an  Indian."    How  much  better  for 


TECUMSEH. 


93 


the  Indian  and  the  white-man,  would  it  have  been 
if  the  whole  Anglo-Saxon  race  had  been  Quakers^ 
Truly,  as  a  nation,  we  shall  have  a  sad  reckoning  in 
the  court  of  Heaven  for  the  injustice  done  to  the 
red  man — ^whatever  it  may  be  for  our  conduct  to- 
wards the  black  one. 

As  soon  as  the  council  had  ended,  Tecumseh  em- 
barked in  his  birch  canoe,  with  four  of  his  braves, 
for  the  mission  he  had  long  contemplated,  to  the 
tribes  of  the  south  and  south-west,  with  a  view,  if 
possible,  to  form  a  confederation  and  an  alliance,  of- 
fensive and  defensive,  between  the  north-western  and 
south-western  Indians,  with  a  view  of  driving  the 
whites  out  of  the  North- Western  Territory,  and 
preserving  intact  the  whole  region  of  country  lying 
between  the  Lakes  and  the  Ohio,  the  Miami  and 
the  Mississippi,  from  the  settlements  of  their  heredi- 
tary foes. 

It  is  very  doubtful  whether  at  this  period,  Gov- 
ernor Harrison  was  aware  of  the  object  of  his  visit. 
At  any  rate,  whether  he  was  or  not,  no  efforts  were 
made  to  detain  him.  Descending  the  Wabash,  the 
Ohio  and  the  Mississippi,  he  visited  every  tribe  on 
the  south-side  of  the  two  last  rivers.  The  Choc- 
taws,  Cherokees,  Chickasaws,  and  extended  his  visit 
to  the  Creeks,  then  occupying  the  country  embraced 
in  the  present  States  of  Mississippi  and  Alabama, 
and  around  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  With  all  these 
tribes  he  held  councils,  and  in  fervent  and  eloquent 
terms,  described  the  white-man's  wrong  and  the 
red  man's  injuries.  Enforcing,  as  far  as  he  could 
among  the  respective  tribes  he  visited,  the  more 


TIT- 


94 


APPENDIX. 


modern,  national  sentiment  that  in  "union  alone 
was  their  strength."  His  motto,  like  that  of  our 
fathers'  during  the  revolutionary  struggle,  as  evi- 
denced in  the  Colonial  papers  of  that  day,  which 
have  been  preserved  to  the  present  time,  was  a  dis- 
jointed snake  with  the  words,  "Join  or  Die."  His  ar- 
gument, that  the  tribes  of  this  continent,  although 
speaking  different  languages,  werehui  one  people,  cre- 
ated by  the  Great  Spirit,  with  different  habits,  feel- 
ings, opinions,  social  and  religious,  from  the  whites, 
who  were  their  hereditary  enemies,  and  who,  in  the 
first  settlement  of  the  country,  having  been  treated 
with  kindness  and  hospitality  by  the  Aborigines,  had 
repaid  these  acts  of  friendship  by  the  destruction  of 
every  tribe  among  which  they  had  been  located  east 
of  the  AUeghanios.  That  in  the  north-west,  under 
the  pretence  of  purchasing  from  various  tribes,  who 
had  no  right  to  dispose  of  the  national  territory  of  the 
Indians,  which  was  the  common  property  of  all  the 
tribes  on  the  continent,  they  were  dispossessing  them 
of  their  property  by  fraud  and  force,  and  would  soon 
drive  them  from  their  hunting  grounds,  beyond  the 
"Father  of  Waters,"  and  ultimately  into  the  Pa- 
cific. That  the  system  of  robbery  cmmittedon 
their  brethren  on  the  north-side  of  the  Ohio  would 
be  extended  south  of  that  river,  and  that  the  tribes 
who  dwelt  there,  the  Choctaws,  Cherokees,  Chick- 
asaws  and  Creeks,  would  be  driven  from  their  pos- 
sessions, and  that  but  a  few  years  would  roll  round 
until  they  would  not  have  a  foot  of  ground  to  hunt 
on  or  cultivate,  from  the  mouth  of  the  Cumberland  to 
the  Belize.    The  history  of  the  last  half  century  will 


TECUMSEH. 


95 


answer  how  far  these  predictions  have  been  verified 
in  the  action  of  the  white  man  towards  the  red  one, 
whenever  the  selfishness  or  greed  of  the  one  was 
to  be  satisfied  by  tlie  spoil  of  the  other. 

Before  Tecumseh  left  the  Prophet's  town  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Tippecanoe  river,  on  his  excursion  to 
the  south  and  south-west,  he  had  in  different  inter- 
views with  his  brothers  enforced  upon  him  the  ab- 
solute necessity  of  preserving  peace  with  the  whites, 
until  his  arrangements  were  completed  for  a  con- 
federacy of  the  tribes  dwelling  on  both  sides  of  the 
Ohio  river,  and  with  those  dwelling  on  the  Missis- 
sippi. He  had  in  various  conversations  laid  before 
him  the  propriety  and  benefits  to  be  gained  from 
such  an  alliance,  and  the  immense  power  and  influ- 
ence to  be  derived  from  such  a  confederation  in  any 
future  contest  with  the  whites.  That  no  blow 
should  be  struck  against  the  settlements  in  Indiana 
and  Illinois,  until  the  means  were  provided  by  the 
Indian  "wwp  (Cetaty^^  to  ensure  their  extermina- 
tion, or  at  least,  to  force  them  out  of  the  coun^'^y 
they  occupied,  and  drive  them  beyond  the  Ohio. 
The  Prophet  promised  that  in  his  absence  no 
warlike  measure  should  be  undertaken,  and  that 
while  strengthening  his  forces  and  enlisting  the  oth- 
er tribes  on  the  Wabash  into  his  service  in  the  com- 
mon cause,  he  would  preserve  amicable  relations 
with  the  whites,  and  by  deception  and  chicanery, 
those  potent  weapons  of  Indian  warfare,  lull  any 
suspicions  that  Governor  Harrison  might  have  in 
reference  to  the  peaceable  intentions  of  the  tribes 
over  whom  the  Prophet  had  so  great  an  influence. 


;■.! 


86 


APPENDIX. 


f}9 


f  : 


That  no  act  should  be  done  in  the  absence  of  Te- 
cumseh,  calculated  to  disturb  the  friendly  relations 
between  the  tribes  residing  on  the  Wabash  and  the 
Government  of  the  United  States.  No  act  done — 
no  expedition  undertaken,  until  Tecumseh  carried 
out  his  plan  by  a  union  of  the  tribes  north  and 
south,  for  the  common  purpose  of  avenging  their 
wrongs  and  expelling  their  enemies,  the  whites, 
from  that  portion  of  the  territory  in  which  they  had 
commenced  the  work  of  settlement  and  civilization. 
Believing  that  the  Prophet  would  fully  carry  out 
his  views  uncier  the  pledges  made  him,  Tecumseh 
felt  no  disposition  to  return  until  his  plans  were 
fully  matured,  and  the  co-operation  of  the  southern 
tribes  in  this  work  of  the  expatriation  of  the  white 
race  from  the  valleys  of  the  Wabash  and  Illinois 
secured.  It  will  be  recollected  that  he  left  Vin- 
cennes  after  his  interview  with  Harrison,  in  the 
month  of  August,  eighteen  hundred  and  eleven. 
In  the  meantime,  the  latter  through  the  traders  Lnd 
others,  who  were  acting  as  his  spies  in  the  Indian 
country  had  been  apprised,  that  movements  were 
making  among  the  northern  tribes,  that  boded  no 
good  to  the  settlements  in  the  southern  portion  of 
the  territory.  Frequent  councils  had  been  held  by 
them,  and  frequent  visits  made  by  their  chiefs  to 
the  Prophet's  town,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Tippeca- 
noe. There  could  be  no  doubt  that  some  plan  was 
concocting,  and  none  more  likely  than  that  a  de- 
scent was  to  be  made  at  an  early  pe7.iod  upon  Vin- 
cennes,  and  the  settlements  around  it,  with  a  view 
to  their  destruction,  and  the  massacre  of  their  in- 


TECUHSEH. 


97 


the 
even. 

Lnd 
idian 
were 
d  no 
on  of 
dby 

3fs  to 

peca- 
was 
I  de- 
Vin- 
view 
ir  in- 


habitants. So  strongly  impressed  was  Governor 
Harrison  with  this  belief,  that  he  immediately  made 
preparations  to  march  with  his  troops,  consisting  of 
about  eight  hundred  men,  including  the  4th  United 
States  regiment,  under  the  command  of  the  gallant 
Miller,  to  the  Prophet's  town  to  compel  them 
to  make  a  peace,  which  should  be  permanent^ 
or  to  chastize  them.  The  battle  of  Tippecanoe, 
fought  on  the  seventh  day  of  November,  eighteen 
hundred  and  eleven,  and  the  important  results  flow- 
ing from  it  to  the  whole  north-western  territory, 
form  some  of  the  brightest  pages  of  Western  his- 
tory, and  need  not  be  recapitulated.  Suffice  it  to 
say,  that  the  defeat  of  the  Prophet  and  his  party 
frustrated  the  "coalition" — ^the  results  of  which  were 
looked  to  with  such  interest  by  Tecumseh — and  de- 
stroyed the  grand  idea  for  which  he  so  long  and 
ably  struggled,  the  confederacy  of  the  Indians  of 
the  continent  against  their  implacable  foe,  the  white 
man.  What  the  consequences  of  such  an  union 
might  have  been,  it  is  fortunate  for  our  race  that  we 
have  no  means  of  determining.  He  who  holds  in 
the  hollow  of  his  hand  the  destinies  of  men  and  of 
nations,  for  his  own  wise  purposes  gave  us  the  vic- 
toi'y,  as  he  had  done  to  our  fathers  forty  years  be- 
fore, in  the  long  and  arduous  struggle  for  our  inde- 
pendence.    !  •  . 

Tecumseh  was  in  the  south,  engaged  in  the  miss- 
ioi*  which  took  him  there,  when  the  battle  of  Tip- 
pecanoe was  fought.  His  chagrin,  disappointment, 
and  anger,  when  he  returned  and  learned  what  had 
been  done  ia  his  absence,  are  said  to  have  been 

7 


'*rf: 


m 

■>',  ■' 


98 


APPENDIX. 


¥ 


ovenvhel  ruing. 


Ho  accused  his  brother  of  dupli- 
city tand  cowartlico,  and  it  is  said  by  those  who 
know  him,  never  forgave  him  to  the  day  of  his 
death.  He  remained  but  a  short  time  with  his 
tribe,  and  on  the  breaking  out  of  the  war  with 
Grjat  Britain,  in  eighteen  hundred  and  twelve, 
joined  Proctor  at  Maiden,  with  a  party  of  his  war- 
riors, and  as  in  life,  so  in  death,  was  found  the  bravo 
and  noble,  but  implacable  foe  of  the  white  race, 
when  at  the  river  liaisin,  in  a  contest  with  his  old 
enemies  he  found  a  warrior's  rest  and  a  warrior's 
grave — battling  bravely  with  his  foes,  for  what  ho 
no  doubt  honestly  believed  were  the  rights  of  his 
people,  against  the  aggression  of  those  who  had 
most  cruelly  and  unjustly  wronged  them.  Peace  to 
his  ashes. 

I  cannot  conclude  this  brief  and  unsatisfactory 
note,  in  reference  to  one  of  the  most  distinguishe<l 
Indian  Chieftains  that  ever  figured  on  this  conti- 
nent, and  one  who  played  a  most  important  part  in 
the  aflPairs  of  the  north-western  territory  during  its 
colonial  period,  without  relating  an  incident  in  his 
history  but  little  known,  and  which  I  had  from  ono 
of  the  parties  connected  with  it:  an  incident  so 
expressive  of  the  noblo  and  chivalrous  nature 
of  this  distinguished  warrior,  under  circumstances 
which  would  have  led  others  of  his  tribe  and  kin- 
dred to  play  a  very  different  part,  that  I  should 
be  doing  injustice  to  his  character  were  I  not 
to  relate  it. 

In  the  spring  of  eighteen  hundred  and  eleven,  and 
previous  to  the  visit  of  Tecumseh  to  Yincennes,  ii 


TECUMSEII. 


99 


bocamo  a  matter  of  deep  interest  to  Governor  Har- 
rison to  ascertain  the  true  feeling  of  the  north-wes- 
tern tribes  towards  the  whites,  and  especially  that 
of  the  Shawnoes,  governed  by  the  Prophet,  and  who 
it  was  well  understood  were  by  no  means  friendly. 
In  fact,  the  Governor  had  understood  from  persons 
he  deemed  perfectly  reliable,  that  the  Shawnoes, 
aided  by  their  confederates,  intended  shortly  to 
make  a  foray  upon  Vincennes,  and  the  lower  settle- 
ments of  the  Wabash.  Anxious  to  ascertain  the 
true  state  of  the  case,  and  if  so,  to  make  the  neces- 
sary preparations  to  repel  the  attack,  as  he  suppos- 
ed, contemplated.  lie  sent  Captain  W.,  afterwards 
Gen;  W.,  with  B.,  the  Indian  interpreter,  and  a  flag 
of  truce  to  the  Prophet's  town,  with  the  ostensible 
purpose  of  inviting  the  Prophet,  Tecumseh,  and  the 
other  chiefs  of  the  Sliawnoo  tribe,  to  a  conference 
with  him  at  Vincennes.  Capt.  W,  readily  under- 
took the  mission.  No  braver  or  better  man  ever 
lived,  and  no  man  better  qualified  to  undertake  so 
important  and  dangerous  a  mission.  Dangerous,  be- 
cause if  the  enterprise  contemplated,  was  to  be  un- 
dertaken by  the  Indians,  no  great  time  would 
elapse  before  it  was  executed.  And  in  accordance 
with  all  rules  of  action  among  the  Aborigines,  the 
blow  would  be  struck  speedily  and  secretly.  The 
detention  of  the  messenger  at  the  Prophet's  town 
until  the  scheme  was  executed,  was  almost  certaiD| 
and  in  such  a  case,  death  inevitable.  It  v/as 
also  a  matter  of  great  importance  to  the  Shawnoes, 
whose  language  he  spoke  fluently,  to  get  hold  of  B. 
the  interpreter,  for  whom  they  had  no  affection,  and 


I  k-  • 


f    ?l 


I     \' 


X 
T 


.l  ^V 


100 


APPENDIX. 


without  whose  aid  and  assistance,  it  was  thought 
the  Governor  would  be  greatly  embarrassed. 

Reflections  of  this  kind  carried  no  terror  to  the 
gallant  W.  His  superior  had  given  him  the  orders, 
and  at  all  hazards,  personal  or  otherwise,  he  deem- 
ed it  his  duty  to  carry  it  out.  With  the  interpre- 
ter, and  carrying  a  flag  of  truce,  he  took  his  depar- 
ture from  the  "Post,"  and  on  the  afternoon  of  the 
fifth  day  arrived  at  the  Prophet's  town.  Their  re- 
ception was  of  the  most  friendly  character — ^the  hos- 
pitality of  the  Prophet  most  unexceptionable.  A 
cabin  was  prepared  for  them;  bear-skins  for  their 
resting  place,  put  in  requisition,  and  every  luxury 
in  the  way  of  game  provided  for  their  table.  A  pro- 
position for  a  council  on  the  ensuing  day  had  been 
made  to  the  Prophet,  and  cheerfully  assented  to. 
Every  thing  bore  the  appearance  of  a  friendly  ter- 
mination of  their  interview,  and  the  Captain  was 
much  rejoiced  to  find  matters  working  so  favorably 
in  regard  to  the  object  of  their  mission.  The  mind 
of  B.,  the  interpreter,  was  not  so  much  at  ease.  Ho 
was  not  deceived  by  these  apparently  favorable 
symptoms.  He  knew  the  Indian  character  well; 
had  lived  among  them  many  years;  spoke  fluently 
the  language  of  every  tribe  which  dwelt  on  the 
Upper  Wabash.  Understood  their  customs,  habits, 
manners  and  charlatanry  well,  and  although  but  im- 
perfectly educated,  was  one  of  the  most  remarkable 
men  I  ever  knew.  It  is  well  known  to  those  who 
were  acquainted  with  the  form  of  government 
among  the  Shawnoes  at  the  time  I  refer  to,  that  the 
wife  of  the  Prophet,  under  the  royal*designation  of 


TECUMSEH. 


101 


"Queen,"  enjoyed  an  influence  and  power  "behind 
the  throne  greater  than  the  throne  itself."    And 
that  while  her  husband,  the  Prophet,  had  an  illim- 
itable influence  over  the  male  portion  of  the  tribe, 
not  only  by  virtue  of  his  office,  but  by  means  of  his 
visions  and  direct  communications  with  the  "Great 
Spirit,"  whose  revelations,   through  this  medium^ 
were  as  much  believed  in,  and  held  canonical,  by 
these  untutorad  sons  of  the  forest,  as  those  of  Joe 
Smith  orBrigham  Young  areby  the  most  devout  Mor- 
mon of  the  Utah  territory,  she  possessed  an  influ- 
ence over  the  female  portion  of  the  tribe  not  less 
potent  than  her  husband's — an  influence  felt,  and 
often  disastrously  felt  in  the  councils  of  the  nation 
— particularlv  where  the  subjects  of  wrong  and  in- 
jury to  the  white  race  were  matters  of  deliberation. 
Towards  sunset  of  the  day  of  the  arrival  of  Capt 
W.  and  B.,  the  interpreter,  at  the  Prophet's  town, 
a  gathering  of  the  squaws  was  noticed  by  the  vigi- 
lant and  wary  interpreter,  whose  suspicions  were 
avrakened  a^  he  saw  them  winding  their  way  from 
all  parts  of  the  town  to  a  common  centre,  and  as 
they  passed  the  hut  in  which  W.  and  himself  had 
their  quarters,  they  eyed  it  and  them,  with  evident 
marks  of  attention  and  distrust,  and  pointed  their 
fingers  at  B.,  who  stood  in  the  door-way,  noticing 
their  movements.    B.,  aware  that  something  was 
going  on  among  the  "softer  sex"  of  Prophet's  town, 
in  which  he  &nd  the  Captain  were  personally  inter- 
ested, expressed  his  fears  to  his  companion,  and 
suggested  that  their  detention  and  death  was  the 
most  probable  result  of  the  deliberations  of  this 


y 


if-m 


102 


APPENDIX. 


M.    II'  ■ 

■**  ; 


female  congress,  knowing  as  he  did,  tlie  influence 
which  the  "Queen"  exercised  over  the  Prophet, 
and  through  him  over  the  tribe.  Much  to  his  as. 
tonishment,  the  gallant  Captain  treated  the  matter 
with  perfect  indifference,  as  he  stretched  himself  on 
his  bear  skin,  with  a  view  to  a  good  night's  refresh- 
ment, after  the  fatigue  of  five  days'  hard  riding.. 
The  interpreter,  however,  felt  but  little  disposition 
to  sleep,  while  his  companion  gave  evident  signs  of 
having  forgotten  all  his  troubles,  if  any  he  had. 
Matters  remained  in  this  situation  until  near  mid- 
night— ^^V.  fast  asleep  and  B.  awake  to  every  pass- 
ing sound.  The  night  was  exceedingly  dark,  and  a 
heavy  mist  had  overspread  the  low  ground  in  which 
the  village  was  situated,  when  a  knock  was  made 
at  the  door  of  the  cabin,  and  a  low  voice  wiis  heard 
calling  the  interpreter  by  name,  in  the  Shawnee  lan- 
guage, with  the  request  to  make  no  noise,  but  open 
the  door  and  let  him  in.  To  this  demand  an  answer 
was  given  by  B.,  enquiring  in  the  same  language 
who  it  was.  To  this  the  reply  was  made  in  the  same 
still,  low  voice,  "Tecumseh."  The  Captain  was 
awakened  by  the  interpreter  and  informed  that  Te- 
cumseh  asked  for  admission.  The  reply  was  "to 
admit  him."  The  door  was  opened  and  Tecumseh 
quietly  and  stilly  entered.  After  making  the  door 
fast,  and  listening  intently  to  ascertain  whether 
there  was  any  poise  in  the  village,  or  any  signs  of 
watchfulness  from  the  tribe,  he  told  W.  through  the 
interpretation  of  B.,  that  the  squaws  had  held  a 
council,  presided  over  by  the  Queen,  in  which  they 
had  determined  to  apply  to  the  Prophet  to  retain 


TECUMSEH. 


103 


the  whites,  and  if  necessary  to  take  away  their  lives, 
and  this  determination  having  been  made  known  to 
the  Pro[)het,  he  had  called  a  council  of  the  tribe,  in 
which  the  matter  had  been  discussed,  andtlie  question 
settled  to  do  so.  That  he,  Tecumseh,  with  a  portion 
of  his  warriors  had  strongly  remonstrated,  showing 
the  impolicy  and  wickedness  of  the  measure,  in  the 
strongest  terms  they  could.  That  they  had  stated 
the  fact,  that  these  men  had  come  there  under  the 
protection  of  a  flag  of  truce,  respected  by  all  civil- 
ized or  savage  nations,  ever  since  the  introduction 
of  it  on  the  continent.  That  they  came  as  bearers 
of  a  peaceful  message  from  Governor  Harrison,  re- 
questing that  the  Proj)het  and  the  other  chiefs 
of  the  Shawnoes,  would  meet  him  in  council  at 
Vincennes.  That  whether  they  mot  him  or  not, 
his  messengers  should  return  in  peace,  and  no 
wrong  should  be  done  them.  That  they  painted  in 
as  strong  colors  as  they  could,  the  gross  injustice 
that  would  bo  done  theso  mon  in  detaining  thorn; 
the  serious  loss  and  injury  to  tho  triba  in  so  doing; 
that  whatever  might  be  their  future  determination 
in  reference  to  the  whites — whether  peace  or  war — 
the  result  of  such  conduct  must  inevitably  end  in 
the  latter — a  war  in  which  no  quarter  would  bo 
given  or  taken,  and  in  which,  illy  prepared  as  tho 
Shawnoes  then  were  for  such  a  contest,  the  inevita- 
ble result  must  be  the  capture  of  their  town,  and 
the  destruction  of  their  people.  For  under  such 
circumstances,  they  could  not  justify  their  conduct 
to  the  other  tribes  in  enmity  with  them,  who  with 
such  a  provocation,  would  take  no  part  in  the  strug- 


104 


APPENDIX. 


u  ' 


m 


'it 


gle,  but  leave  the  tribe  to  fight  it  out  with  the 
whites,  as  best  they  could  without  any  aid  from 
them.  That  in  a  good  cause,  where  the  honor  or 
the  rights  of  his  people  were  concerned,  he  would 
shed  his  blood,  like  water,  in  their  defence;  but  in 
a  bad  one,  such  as  he  could  not  justify  himself, 
such  as  the  Great  Spirit  himself  could  not  approve, 
he  could  not  fight ;  and  no  good  warrior  could. 
That  the  Prophet  and  the  whole  tribe  knew  well  his 
hostility  to  the  whites,  and  that  he  felt  no  fear- 
dreaded  no  danger — .sought  every  peril  he  could  en- 
counter, in  every  battle-field  they  met  in,  and  would 
were  it  possible  exterminate  the  race.  But  it  must 
be  in  a  fight  that  his  heart  approved  and  his  judg- 
ment sanct  ioned.  That  they  knew  but  little  of  him, 
with  all  his  hatred  to  the  white  race,  if  they  believed 
he  would  get  one  of  their  people  into  his  power  by 
fraud  and  falsehood,  and  then  detain  them  by  stra- 
tagem, or  murder  them  in  cold  blood,  as  they 
would  do  if  they  detained  these  men,  and  then  mas- 
sacred them.  That  he  was  but  a  war-chief,  com- 
manding warriors,  and  had  but  little  influence  in 
the  councils  of  the  tribe,  when  opposed  by  the 
Prophet.  That  it  was  the  determination  of  the 
council,  no  doubt  influenced  by  the  solicitations  of 
the  squaws,  to  keep  them  prisoners;  and  as  to  their 
future  fiite,  it  would  depend  upon  circumstances- 
most  probably  they  would  be  tomahawked  or  burnt 
at  the  stake.  That  the  only  mode  of  preventing: 
this  was  to  make  the^r  escape— that  he  had  provid- 
ed for  this,  if  they  were  cautious  and  prudent.- 
They  must  observe  the  strictest  silence,  take  the  ■■ 


TBCUMSEH. 


105 


saddles  and  bridles  and  follow  him.    They  did  so. 
Cautiously  and  stealthily  thoy  made  their  way 
through  the  town.    The  darkness  of  the  night,  and 
a  dense  fog  greatly  aided  them  in  so  doing.     Even 
the  Indian  dogs,  so  numerous  and  noisy  at  an  In- 
dian village,  were  undisturbed.    Tecumseh  led  the 
way.    After  passing  through  the  village,  they  de- 
scended into  the  bottoms  of  the  Wabash,  and  when 
almost  half  a  mile  from  the  town,  a  sound  like  the 
gobbling  of  a  wild  turkey  was  responded  to  by 
another  of  similar  character,  from  the  underwood 
of  the  forest.    They  repaired  to  the  spot,  where 
they  found  their  horses  in  charge  of  two  young 
men,  belonging  to  Tecumseh 's  party,  mounted  on 
their  ponies.     A  few  words  in  Shawnoe  were  whis- 
pered to  them  by  their  Chief.    A  brief  adieu  was 
bidden  to  the  gallant  and  chivalrous  warriors ;  and 
having  saddled  their  st-eeds,  accompanied  by  thir 
guides,   they  made  their  way  to  the  "Post"  in 
safety.    The  Indians  leaving  them  when  in  reach 
of  the  settlements,  and  returning  to  their  tribe. 
Such  was  the  narrative  given  to  me  many  years 
since  by  one  of  the  parties  to  the  transaction,  long 
since  gathered  to  his  fathers,  and  it  affords  a  most 
beautiful  and  striking  illustration  of  the  noble  char- 
acter of  the  distinguished  Chieftain,  the  incidents 
of  whose  life,  as  connected  with  our  border  history, 
**few  and  far  apart"  I  have  faintly  delineated. 


I.I- 


fi'' 


.i]n 


;hi-> 


m- 


''  f~    t 


iis';^ 


r.i  \  [ 


>* 


if.'r 


iu 


{  ..i-. 


■/'■."'..'.• 


.    IV. 


'  I : ; .    I  ' 


'  > 


!    •■• 


PUBLIC  LANDS. 


TIIR  niPPOPITION.  8KTTLRMBNT,  AKD  ALLOTMFNT  OF  TUB  PCPLIC  LAfMJll 
TIIK  "0M>  VTNCKNNKS  LAND  LIdTUlCT,"  U.NOKU  TUX  VIIKNCU,  lUiOLISH 
AND  A»IERICAN  (iRANTS. 

The  disposition,  allotment  and  settlement  of  the 
public  lands,  within  what  is  called  the  "Vinccnncs 
Land  District,"  is  so  intimately  connected  with  the 
history  of  the  town  itself,  is  so  peculiar  and  anoma- 
lous, that  a  brief  description  of  it  will  not  be  without 
interest.  A  volume  would  hardly  suffice  to  notice 
the  subject  in  all  its  details.  Subjects  as  the  citi- 
zens of  the  "Post"  have  been  to  the  three  greatest 
powers  of  the  world,  exclusive  of  the  colonial  de- 
pendence on  Virginia,  France,  England  and  the 
United  States,  each  of  whom  have  had  military 
possession  of  the  place,  and  each  of  whom  have  re- 
gulated its  civil  government  within  the  last  hundred 
years,  it  may  readily  be  supposed  that  its  titles, 
and  its  laws,  have  been  as  variant  as  the  codes  of 
these  three  great  nations,  to  each  of  whom  in  turn 
they  have  owed  allegiance.  Their  titles  have  been 
regulated  as  well  by  the  '' Contmne  du  Parisy^  the 
"Customs  of  Paris,"  as  the  Common  Law  of  Eng- 
land, and  the  Statutes  of  the  United  States.  Each 
have  made  grants  to  the  "ancient  inhabitants,"  and 
under  titles  derived  from  each  of  the  great  empires 
above  named,  they  have,  for  the  most  part,  held 


PUBLIC   LANDS. 


107 


possession,  and  theso  have  at  diiferent  times  been 
confirmed  by  the  authority  of  the  United  States. 
It  was  peculiarly  right  and  appropriate  that  this 
should  have  been  done,  and  although  no  doubt 
many  claims  were  allowed  which  were  not  strictly 
legitimate,  yet  their  long  possession,  previous  occu- 
pancy, and  prior  rights — oven  though  no  written 
grant  or  concession  could  he  shown — made  it  tho 
duty  of  the  Government,  after  the  cession  of  Vir- 
ginia, to  give  to  these  people,  where  it  could  possibly 
be  done,  a  title  which  from  that  time  would  bo  un- 
questioned. There  being  no  public  records  here, 
whenever  grants  and  concessions  were  made,  (for  not 
one  in  one  hundred  could  probably  read  or  write,) 
they  passed  by  deliver//,  and  possession  of  their  land 
or  lot  was  at  least  prima  facie  evidence  of  their 
title.  The  boundaries  of  these  concessions  were 
not  very  accurate  or  well  defined ;  and  the  honest 
and  unsuspecting  Frenchman  took  about  the  quan- 
tity which  he  deemed  conceded  by  the  terms  of  the 
grant,  which  generally  was  so  many  "toises"  or 
"arpents,"  "more  or  less."  There  was  no  action  of 
ejectment  known  among  these  primitive  settlers, 
and  if  the  land  of  his  neighbor  was  encroached  ujton, 
the  line  v\'as  settled  by  the  arbitrement  of  their 
neighbors,  or  the  "order  of  the  commandant," 
whose  decree  in  the  premises  was  a  finality,  from 
which  there  was  no  appeal.  Even  the  original  con- 
cessions themselves,  made  by  the  French  and  Brit- 
ish commandants,  were  generally  made  upon  small 
scraps  of  paper,  which  it  was  customary,  if  placed 
anywhere,  to  deposit  in  the  "notary's  otfice."    He 


108 


APPENDIX. 


;!»; 


kept  no  record,  but  committed  the  most  important 
documents  to  loose  sheets,  which  in  the  changes  of 
government,  and  in  tlie  lapse  of  time,  came  into  the 
hands  of  those  who  fraudulently  destroyed  them, 
or  thinking  them  of  no  consequence,  lost  or  Liade 
way  with  them.  By  the  law  which  governed  these 
titles,  the  "Customs  of  Paris,"  they  were  considered 
"a  family  inheritance,"  and  often  descended  to 
women  and  children.  In  one  instance  during  the 
government  of  "Monsieur  St.  Ange,"  who  was 
commandant  at  the  "Post  in  1774,"  a  royal  notary 
ran  off  with  all  the  public  papers  in  his  possession. 
And  in  the  office  of  Mr.  Le  Grand,  who  was  notary 
from  1776  to  1778,  Gov.  Sargent,  who  was  acting 
Governor  in  1790,  (Gen.  St.  Clair  being  absent,) 
states  in  his  letter  to  General  Washington,  of  the 
date,  Vincenncs,  Knox  county,  July  31st,  1790, 
*'  that  the  records  have  been  so  falsified,  and  there 
is  such  gross  fraud  and  forgery  as  to  invalidate  all 
evidence  and  information,  which  I  might  otherwise 
have  acquired  from  the  papers."  '       ' 

In  addition  to  these  granls  and  concessions  to  the 
"ancient  inhabitants  of  che  Post,"  there  was  a 
grant  by  one  of  the  French  commandants,  while  the 
country  was  under  the  dominion  of  Louis  the  15th, 
of  one  hundred  and  fifty  acres  adjoining  the  vil- 
lage," (being  that  portion  of  the  town  laying  between 
what  is  now  Busseron  street  and  the  railroad  depot, 
extending  out  into  the  prairie,)  to  the  ** PiankasAaio 
Indians''^^  tribe  now,  I  believe,  nearly  extinct, 
but  then  claiming  to  bring  five  hundred  warriors 
into  the  field.    This  tract  was  held  by  the  Indians, 


PUBLIC  LANDS. 


109 


occupied  by  their  wigwams,  and  by  them  cultivated 
and  improved  until  about  the  year  1786,  when  they 
removed  to  the  upper  Wabash,  and  gave,  or  sold 
their  respective  interests  as  they  moved  off,  to  their 
neighbors,  the  French.  Congress  subsequently 
confirmed  their  titles.    See  Act,  March  3d,  1791. 

Subsequent  to  the  capture  of  the  "Post"  by 
Clark,  sometime  in  the  year  1779,  Col.  John  Todd 
was  sent  out  here  as  Governor  and  Commandant, 
by  the  Executive  and  Legislative  Council  of  Vir- 
ginia, clothed  with  a  "brief  authority,"  for  he  re- 
mained hero  but  a  short  time,  passing  on  to  Kas- 
kaskia  and  appointing  Mr.  Lo  Gras,  Lieut.  Gov- 
ernor in  his  place. 

During  his  sojourn,  however,  ho  played  "some 
fantastic  tricks,"  and  assumed  prerogatives  in  refer- 
ence to  the  public  lands,  by  no  means  to  be  derived 
from  his  gubernatorial  powers,  as  the  representa- 
tive of  Virginia,  in  this  newly  acquired  territory. 
Notwithstanding,  Virginia  by  act  of  legislation  had 
expressly  declared,  before  ho  was  appointed,  "that 
the  lands  north-west  of  the  Ohio  were  expressly  ex- 
empted from  location,  and  no  person  should  be 
allowed  pre-emption,  or  any  benefit  whatever  from 
settling  the  same,"  and  the  Governor  was  directed 
"  to  issue  his  proclamation  forbidding  all  persona 
from  settling  on  them,  and  in  case  of  disobedience,  to 
make  use  of  force  to  remove  them."  As  early  as 
1787,  Congress  passed  the  following  resolution : 
.,  "Besolved,  That  the  Secretary  of  War  direct  the 
commanding  olficer  of  the  troops  of  the  United 
States,  on  the  Ohio,  to  take  immediate  and  efficient 


110 


APPENDIX. 


1^^ 
P 
If 


i 


wn 

!'i:-^ 


i 


measures  for  dispossessing  a  body  of  men,  who  have, 
in  a  lawless  and  unauthorizod  manner,  taken  posses- 
sion of  "Pos<  Si.  Vincen%^'  in  defiance  of  the  pro- 
clamation and  authority  of  the  United  States,,  and 
that  he  employ  the  whole,  or  such  part  of  the  force 
under  his  command,  as  he  shall  judge  necessary  to 
effect  the  object." 

Todd  went  to  Kaskaskia  in  1779,  where  he  issued 
his  proclamation  descriptive  of  the  fertility  and 
beauty  of  the  "Valley  of  the  Wabash,"  and  strong- 
ly intimating  that  "authority  was  meant  to  be  im- 
plied"— if  not  expressly  given — ^to  the  Governor 
by  Virginia,  to  make  grants  of  land.  That  the 
Executive  authority  under  Virginia  in  the  north- 
western territory,  had  the  same  right  to  make  con- 
cessions of  land  as  was  claimed  bv  the  French  and 
British  commandantB.  Mr.  Le  Gras,  his  substi- 
tute at  the  "Post,"  seems  to  have  had  fewer  scru- 
ples upon  the  subject  of  the  right  than  his  superior, 
Governor  Todd.  Not  only  did  he  exercise  the  pow- 
er of  disposing  of  the  public  domain,  but  he  dele- 
gated it  to  the  County  Court,  composed  of  four 
judges,  organized  under  the  act  of  Virginia,  and 
who  held  their  sessions  at  Vincennes.  They  did 
a  wholesale  business  in  the  way  of  disposing  of  the 
domain — not  only  to  others,  but  to  themselves — not 
only  by  the  "arpent,"  but  by  "leagues."  The  way 
it  is  stated  to  have  been  done  is  this:  Three  of  the 
four  judges  were  left  on  the  bench,  while  one  ro* 
tired.  The  court  then  made  a  grant  of  so  many 
^*' leagues"  of  land  to  their  absent  colleague,  which 
was  entered  of  record — ^he  returned  as  soon  as  the 


PUBLIC   LA.ND3. 


Ill 


grant  was  recorded,  and  another  of  these  "ermined" 
gentlemen  left  the  bench,  while  the  Chief  Justice 
and  the  other  Judges  made  a  similar  grant  to  their 
absent  friend.  After  the  grant  was  made  and  duly 
recorded,  he  returned — the  third  departed,  and  a 
similar  record  was  made  for  his  benefit;  and  so  with 
the  fourth.  In  this  wholesale  transfer  of  the  pub- 
lic land,  if  continued,  Virginia  would  have  had  but  a 
small  donation  to  make  her  sister  States  of  the  confed- 
eracy, when  she  gave  up  the  empire  she  held  in  the 
north-western  territory  "for  the  common  benefit." 
Governor  Sargent  complainsof  their  wholesale  plun- 
der of  the  public  domain,  in  his  letter  to  General 
Washington  in  1790,  and  among  the  documents  ac- 
companying that  letter,  is  the  answer  of  the  Judges 
to  his  enquiry,  "by  what  right  these  concessions 
were  made,"  and  is  as  follows: 
"To  the  Honorable  Winthrop  Sargent,  Esquire, 
Secretary  in  and  for  the  Territory  of  the  United 
States,  north-west  of  the  river  Ohio,  and  vested 
with  all  powers  of  Governor  and  Commander-in- 
Chief: 

Sir: — As  you  have  given  orders  to  the  Magis- 
trates who  formerly  composed  the  Court  of  the  Dis- 
trict of  Vincennes,  under  the  jurisdiction  of  Virgin- 
ia, to  give  you  their  reasons  for  having  taken  upon 
them  to  grant  concessions  for  the  lands  within  the 
district,  in  obedience  thereto,  we  beg  leave  to  inform 
you  that  their  principal  reason  is,  that  since  the  es- 
tablishment of  the  country,  the  Commandants  have 
always  appeared  to  be  vested  with  powers  to  give 
lands.    Their  founder,  Mr.  Vincennes,  began  to 


112 


aff£n:)ix.    r 


m 


■ji'  ■;■ 


w 


give  concessions,  and  all  his  successors  have  given 
lands  and  lots.  Mr.  Lc  Gras  was  appointed  com* 
mandantof  "Post  Vincennes"  by  the  Lieutenant 
of  the  county  and  commander-in-chief,  John  Todd, 
who  wtis  in  the  year  1779  sent  by  the  State  of  Vir- 
ginia for  to  regulate  the  government  of  the  country^ 
and  who  substituted  Mr.  Le  Gras  with  his  power. 
In  his  absence,  Mr.  Le  Gras,  who  was  then  com- 
mandant, assumed  that  he  had  in  quality  of  com- 
mandant, authority  to  give  lands  according  to  the 
ancient  usages  of  other  commanders,  and  he  verbally 
informed  the  court  of  "Post  Vincennes"  that  when 
th^  would  judge  it  proper  to  give  lands  or  lots  to 
those  who  should  come  into  the  country  to  settle,  or 
otherwise,  they  might  do  it,  and  that  he  gave  them 
permission  so  to  do.  These  are  the  reasons  that  we 
acted  on,  and  if  we  have  done  more  than  we  ought, 
it  was  on  account  of  the  little  knowledge  which  wo 
had  of  public  affairs.  .        ;i;       •    • 

We  are  with  great  respect^    .,*  -< 
Your  honors  most  obedient, 

And  very  humble  servants, 
F.  BOSSERON,  . 
L.  E.  DELINE, 
,  ,     ,  ,       PIERRE  GAMELIN, 

,/.'...  >  PIERRE  QUEREZ,  M  his  mark. 
Post  Vincennes,  July  3d,  1790.  .,  •  -  ,,»  i .  ;* 
Whether  his  honor,  "Pierre  Querez,"  made  "his 
mark"  with  his  pen  or  his  sword^  as  the  sturdy  Ba- 
rons did,  who  wrenched  the  charter  from  King 
John,  history  gives  no  intimation.  It  is  however 
but  fair  to  presume  that  as  one  of  the  '*  Justices  of 


PUBLIC   LANDS. 


113 


the  quorum"  established  at  ''the  Post''  in  1790  by 
"John  Todd  of  Virginia,"  who  was  "'sent  for  to  re- 
gulate the  government^''  that  it  was  with  his  pen. 

One  thing,  however,  is  very  certain,  "the  school- 
master was  notabroad"  much  at  the  "Post"  in  1790, 
or  ''Judge  Querez"  would  have  given  us  a  specimen 
of  his  chirography,  and  which,  as  a  faithful  annal- 
ist, I  regret  to  say,  I  believe  he  was  unable  to  do. 
As  an  impartial  historian,  however,  of  the  actings 
and  doings  of  the  "Post"  seventy  years  since,  I  feel 
it  my  duty  to  state,  that  the  land  operations  of  the 
'^Honorable  Pierre  Querez,^'  as  one  of  the  Judges  of 
the  "Court  of  Common  Pleas  for  the  counties  of 
Vincennes  and  Illinois,"  have  made  their  "mark" 
as  well  upon  the  Records  of  the  Land  Office,  as 
those  of  the  Court  of  which  he  was  an  honorable  mem- 
ber. I  find  that  in  the  Report  of  the  Commission- 
ers for  "examining  claims  to  land  in  the  district  of 
Vincennes,  in  pursuance  of  the  act  of  Congress  of 
March  4tli,  1804,"  in  a  schedule  of  "cases  not  cm- 
braced  by  any  act  of  Congress,"  and  rejected,  is  to 
be  found  the  following  claims:  "Thomas  Flower 
claims  an  undivided  third  part  of  an  undivided 
fourth  part  of  a  grant  made  by  the  Court  to  "Pierre 
Querez,"  father,  and  Pierre  Querez,  son,  of  a  tract  of 
land  beginning  at  theRiver  Marie,  to  White  Riv- 
er, and  ahoiht  ten  leagues  deep,  excluding  from  said 
grant  any  land  that  may  have  been  granted,  as  as- 
signee of  Pierre  Querez,  father." 

"The  heirs  of  Isaac  Decker,  assignee  of  Pierre 
Querez,  father^  claim  two  thousand  acres,  part  of  the 
preceding  grant." 


lU 


APPENDIX. 


m 


m 


!::P 


.1:    :';' 


^'Jonathan  Furcell,  assignee  of  Pierre  Querez, 
claims ^i;0  thousand  acres  of  the  same  grant." 

'^Thomas  Flower,  assignee  of  Pierre  Querez,  claims 
twinin  thousand  acres  of  the  same  grant." 

"Thomas  Flower  claims  an  uncertain  quantity  of 
the  same  grant." 

It  is  but  justice  to  "Judge  Querez"  to  say,  that  he 
was  not  alone  of  the  Honorable  Court  to  whom  the 
whole  country,  to  which  the  Indian  title  had  been 
extinguished,  was  parceled  out.  Judge  Gamelin 
seems  to  have  come  in  for  a  fair  share.  For  in  the 
same  document,  I  find  among  the  rejected  claims: 

"Thomas  Flower,  as  assignee  of  Pieire  (■amelin^ 
(AsAins forty-one  thousand  acres" 

"Jonathan  Purcell,  assignee  of  Pierre  Gardelin  and 
Nicholas  FerroitfClaimQ twenty-seven tlunisand  acres" 

Truly,  if  there  had  been  a  confirmation  of  these 
magnificent  grants,  the  office  of  Judge  would  have 
been  much  more  valuable  and  lucrative  than  it  is 
in  this  hard-working  and  poorly-paid  era,  if  we  take 
our  judiciary  as  an  example. 

These  immense  and  unauthorized  grants  gave  a 
great  deal  of  trouble  to  the  Government  in  the  early 
settlement  of  Indiana,  and  for  many  years  after. 
For  as  late  as  1802,  we  find  Gen.  Harrison,  under 
date  of  June  19th  of  that  year,  being  then  Gover- 
nor of  the  Territory,  writing  to  Mr.  Madison,  Secre- 
tary of  State,  as  follows: 

ViNCENNEs,  June  19th,  1802. 

Sir— The  circumstances  mentioned  in  this  letter 

I  have  considered  of  sufficient  importance  to  be 

communicated  to  the  President.     The  Court  est.  .b- 

lishcd  at  this  place,  under  the  authority  of  the  State 


PUBUC  LANDS. 


116 


of 


of  Virginia^  in  the  year  1780,  (as  I  before  have  done 
myself  the  honor  to  inform  you,)  assumed  to  ihem,' 
selves  the  right  of  granting  land  to  every  applicant. 
Having  exercised  this  power  for  some  time,  without 
opposition,  they  began  to  conclude  that  their  right 
over  the  land  was  supreme^  and  that  they  could,  with 
as  much  propriety,  grant  to  themselves  as  to  others. 
Accordingly,  an  arrangement  was  made,  by  which 
the  whole  country  to  which  the  Indian  title  was  sup- 
posed to  be  extinguished,  was  divided  between  the 
members  of  the  Court,  and  orders  to  that  eifect  en- 
tered on  the  Journal— each  member  absenting 
himself  from  the  Court  on  the  day  that  the 
order,  was  to  be  made  in  his  favor,  so  that  it  might 
appear  to  be  the  act  of  his  fellows  only.  The  tract 
thus  disposed  of  extends  on  the  Wabash  River, 
twenty-four  leagues  from  "Point  Coupe,"  to  the 
mouth  of  White  River,  and  forty  leagues  into  the 
country  west,  and  thirty  east  from  the  Wa- 
bash, excluding  only  the  land  immediately  surround- 
ing the  town,  which  had  before  been  granted  to  the 
amount  of  twenty  or  thirty  thousand  acres. 

"The  authors  of  this  ridiculous  transaction  soon 
found  that  no  advantage  could  bo  derived  from  it, 
as  they  could  find  no  purchasers ;  and  I  belive  that 
the  idea  of  holding  any  part  of  the  land,  was,  by  the 
greater  part  of  them,  abandoned  a  few  years  ago. 
However,  the  claim  was  discovered,  and  a  part  of  it 
purchased  by  some  of  those  speculators  who  infest 
our  country,  and,  through  these  people,  a  number  of 
others  in  different  parts  of  the  United  States  have 
become  concerned,  some  of  whom  are  actually  pre- 


116 


APFENMX. 


paring  to  make  settlements  on  the  land  the  ensuing^ 
spring.  Indeed,  I  should  not  bo  surprised  to  see- 
jive  hundred  families  settling  under  these  titles  in 
the  course  of  a  year.  The  price  at  which  this  land 
is  sold  enables  any  body  to  become  a  purchaser — 
one  thomand  acres  being  frequently  sold  for  an  in- 
different  horse  or  gun.  And  as  a  formal  deed  is 
made  reciting  the  grant  of  the  Court,  (made  as  pre- 
tended under  the  authority  of  Virginia,)  many  igr 
norant  people  have  been  induced  to  part  with  their 
little  all  to  obtain^  this  ideal  property ;  and  they 
will  no  doubt  endeavor  to  strengthen  their  claim  as- 
soon  as  they  discover  the  deception,  by  an  actual 
settlement.  The  extent  of  these  speculations  was. 
unknown  to  me  until  lately.  I  am  now  informed 
that  a  number  of  persons  are  in  the  habit  of  repair- 
ing to  this  place  (Vincennes,)  whore  they  purchase 
two  or  three  hundred  thoifsand  acres  of  this  claim,  for 
which  they^et  a  deed  properly  authenticated  and  re- 
corded, and  then  disperse  themselves  over  the  Uni- 
ted States  to  cheat  the  ignorant  and  credulous..  In 
some  measure  to  check  this  practice,  I  have  forbid- 
den the  Recorder  and  Prothonotary  of  this  county 
from  recording  or  authenticating  any  of  these  pa- 
pers— ^having  determined  that  the  official  seals  of 
the  Territory  shall  not  be  prostituted  to  a  purpose 
so  base  as  that  of  assisting  an  infamous  fraud. 
I  have  the  honor  to  be,  &c., 

WILLIAM  HENRY  HARRISON. 
To  the  Hon.  James  Madison,  Secretary  of  State. 

No  confirmation  of  the  grants  made  by  this  "Hon- 
orable Courf^  was  ever  made  by  the  Government ; 


PUfiiLIC  LiLVDS. 


117 


ftiid  as  the  sums  paid,  "an  indifferent  horse  or  a  ri- 
fle gun,"  for  "two  or  three  hundred  thousand  acres 
of  land,"  were  trifling  for  the  original  purchasers,  no 
great  loss  was  suiferedby  them;  the  purchasers  wwdfer 
them  may  have  "suftered  some."  Land  speculations 
ill  these  more  modern  tin^s  are  not  quite  as  cheap 
or  extensive,  except  in  cases  of  railroad  grants. 

I  append  here  a  copy  of  a  "Court  Grant"  made 
by  "Le  Grand,"  Clerk  of  the  Court,  in  French,  from 
the  old  records  of  the  Land  Oflfice  in  1785,  as  a  cu- 
riosity : 

Savant  le  pouvoirs  donnes  a  Mons'rs  Les  Magis- 
trals de  la  Coiir  de  St.  Vincennes,  par  le  Snr.  Joan 
Todd,  Colonel  et  Grand  Juge  civil  pour  Les  Etats 
Unis,  (Signer  John  Todd,  Colonel  and  Civil  Grand 
Justice  of  the  United  States.)  La  sus  ditte  Cour, 
apres  avoir  examine  et  murement  delibere  qu'il  est 
de  neccssite  essenticlle,  que  La  Ville  (the  City  of 
Vincennes)  et  la  campagne,  soist  etablie  par  des  ha- 
bitants, pour  le  soutien  et  commerce  du  pais  du 
Conte  Des  Illinois  et  St  Vincenne,  et  voyant  le 
grand  quantite  des  terres  incultes,  et  qui  n'ont 
jamais  ete  etablie,  ni  concede,  par  aucune  personne, 
et  en  vertu  de  les  pouvoirs.  La  Snr.  Le  Gras,  Col- 
onel Commandant  et  President  pe  la  sus  ditto  Cour, 
a  respondre  une  requette  et  signee,  on  il  est  ordonne, 
a  moy  Gabriel  Le  Grand,  griffier  de  la  Cour,  de 
^onjjeder  et  accorder  Henry  Coupraiter  (his  name 
WAS  Henry  Cooprider,)  une  terre  de  quatre  cent  ar- 
penten  circumference,  size  et  situ6e  a  I'^st  du 
Marais  de  la  ville,  du  cliemaine  du  fort,  aparent 
Bornee  a  Jean  Coupraiter;  ^t  des  autres  cot'O^s,  an 


118 


APPENDIX. 


i4^ 

m 

111 


m  .A 


terre  non  conced6e,  pour  ^njuir  le  dit  Henry  Cou- 
praiter  ses  heirs.  Et  ayant  causee  en  pleinne  pro- 
priety possessions  et  jouissance;  comme  bien  a  lui 
appartenant,  en  ce  soumettant  au  reglement  qui  en 
seront  fait  par  la  puissance  a  ce  siijet,  et  a  etablir 
dans  I'an  et  jour,  et  e'tenir  feu  et  lieu.  Donn6  au 
dit  Coupraiter,  pour  lui  servir  et  valloir,  ce  que  de 
raison.     Ce  six  Juin,  1786. 

LE  GRAND,  Greffier,  de  la  Cour. 

En  registre  du  Gref  de  la  ville  St.  Vincenne,  au 
folio  308. 

That  is  to  say  in  the  King's  English : 

That  the  Court,  knowing  the  power  given  to  them 
by  "SiGNOR  John  Todd,  Colonel  and  Civil  Grand 
Justice  of  the  United  States,"  after  having  ex- 
amined and  duly  deliberated  on  the  absolute  neces- 
sity, not  only  to  the  "City  of  Vincennes,"  but  to  the 
whole  countr}'^,  that  the  lands  hereabouts  should  be 
settled,  for  the  supply  and  commerce  of  the 
"County  of  Illinois  and  Vincennfs,"  and  see- 
ing the  great  quantity  of  land  uncultivated,  which 
has  never  been  settled  nor  granted  to  any  one — ^the 
Court,  by  virtue  of  the  powers  given  to  them,  the 
Signor  Le  Gras,  Colonel  Commandant,  and  President 
of  said  Court,  has  responded  favorably  to  the  writ- 
ten request  of  "Henry  Coupraiter,"  and  directed 
me,  "Gabriel  Le  Grand,  Clerk  of  the  Court,"  to  grant 
and  accord  to  said  Coupraiter  four  hundred  arpents 
of  landi  bounded^  &c.  He,  the  said  "Henry  Couprai- 
ter submitting  to  all  regulations  made  between  a 


ric 


PUBLIC  LANDS. 


119 


All  which  is  duly  enrolled  in  the  Records  of  Vin- 
cennes,  folio  308,  and  was  exhibited  before  the 
Board  of  Commissioners,  as  appears  by  their  re- 
cord, March  26th,  1804. 

**Signor  John  Todd,  Colonel  and  Civil  Grand  Jus- 
tice of  the  United  States,"  who,  seventy-two  years 
since,  was  "Tetrach  of  these  Provinces,"  now  con- 
stituting the  great  States  of  Indiana  and  Illinois,  and 
whose  word  was  law  (and  for  aught  I  know  gospel 
too,)  to  the  simple-minded  Frenchmen  here  and  at 
Kaskaskia,  who  gave  away  townships  of  land  on  a 
mere  written  request;  and  "Signor  Le  Grras,  Colonel 
Commandant  and  President  of  the  Court,"  and  the 
more  humble  but  not  less  useful  "Le  Grand, 
Clerk,"  where  are  they?  Echo  answers — where? 
Long  since  gathered  to  their  fathers — their  name 
and  fame  unknown,  except  in  the  musty  archives  of 
the  Vincennes  Land  Office.  What  would  they  say 
if,  by  the  same  great  power  that  created  and  de- 
stroyed them,  they  were  permitted  to  revisit  the 
scenes  of  their  past  labors — were  .again  to  become 
denizens  of  earth — and  witness  the  changes  that 
have  here  taken  place — were  to  stand  upon  the  banks 
of  the  "Oubache"  and  view  the  population,  wealth 
and  enterprise  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  race  along  its 
borders — to  see  the  towns  which  have  risen  as  if  by 
magic — ^the  cultivated  farms,  the  manufactories,  the 
churches,  colleges  and  schools? — to  see  in  the  place 
of  the  bark  canoe  of  the  Indian  paddling  along  its 
clear  waters,  the  steamboat  loaded  with  our  rich 
products  destined  for  the  sunny  South,  and  bounding 
over  its  surface  as  if  it  had  the  vitality  and  speed  of 


120 


APPENDIX. 


the  racer?  Suppose  they  stood  again  upon  the  "/»>• 
dian  Fields"  then  the  location  of  the  Piankishaw 
Village^  and  extending  their  vision  but  a  short  dis- 
tance, saw  the  steam  locomotive,  with  its  long  train 
of  passenger  and  freight  cars,  trailing  like  some 
huge  anaconda  across  the  commons,  black  with 
smoke  and  wreathed  with  steam,  shrieking  with  its 
whistle  and  sounding  afar  off,  giving  out  a  screech 
compared  with  which  the  war-whoop  of  a  thousand 
Indian  warriors  would  be  insignificant  and  unheard! 
Suppose  again  "Signor  John  Todd,  Colonel  and 
Grand  Justice  of  the  United  States,"  wished  to 
communicate  with  Patrick  Henry,  Governor  of  Vir- 
ginia, or  with  Mr.  Jefferson,  and  to  inform  them  of 
his  arrival  here  , should  seek  out  some  "courier  du 
bois,"  some  half  breed,  to  traverse  what  he  thought 
was  still  the  wilderness  between  Post  Vincennes  and 
Richmond — should  be  told  that  if  he  would  walk  a 
square,  the  message  would  be  sent  and  an  answer  be 
returned  in  thirty  mmutcs.  Would  not  "the  Grand 
Judge  of  the  United  States's"  hair  stand  on  end  and 
his  voice  cleave  to  his  jaws,  as  all  these  marvels  of 
the  nineteenth  century  developed  themselves  to  his 
own  and  the  muddled  understandings  of  his  compa- 
nions, "Signor  Le  Gras,  Colonel  Commandant  at 
Post  St.  Vincennes,"  and  ^'Gabriel  Le  Grand,  Greffier 
de  la  Cour,"  at  the  same  place,  in  the  year  of  our 
Lord,  1787?  Such  have  been  the  changes,  such  the 
wonders,  in  but  little  over  half  a  century.  What 
will  they  be  in  half  a  century  more?  Let  those  chro- 
nicjle  them  who  succeed  us.       .,,    ,m^j;.., 


I'l 


■.;..f.,. 


.r 


^*^,-\^--'.  't.V,   T>7> 


PUBLIC   LANDS. 


121 


At  a  very  early  period,  under  the  confederation, 
the  right  of  the  settlers  at  "JPost  Vincennes"  to 
their  lots  and  lands  became  a  subject  of  considera- 
tion by  Congress.  In  the  month  of  August,  1788, 
on  the  report  of  a  committee  consisting  of  Messrs. 
Williamson,  Dane,  Clark,  Tucker  and  Baldwin,  to 
whom  was  referred  the  report  of  a  former  commit- 
tee respecting  the  inhabitants  of  Vincennes,  the  fol- 
lowing resolution  was  adopted:  Resolved^  That 
measures  be  taken  for  confirming  in  their  posses- 
sions and  titles,  the  French  and  Canadian  inhabi- 
tants and  other  settlers  at  "  Post  St.  Vincennes," 
(this  title  of  '^St.  Vincennes"  is  used  in  all  the  old 
acts  of  Congress,  where  the  town  is  mentioned; 
though  it  was  never  understood  by  the  * 'ancient  in- 
habitants" that  "Captain  Fruncais  Morgan  de  Vin- 
senne,"  its  founder,  was  enrolled  upon  the  calender 
of  Saints,)  who,  on  or  before  the  year  1783,  had  set- 
tled there  and  had  professed  themselves  citizens  of 
the  United  States,  or  any  of  them,,  and  for  laying  off 
to  them  the  several  tracts  which  they  rightfully  claim, 
and  which  may  have  been  allotted  to  them  accord- 
ing to  the  laws  and  usages  of  the  Government  un- 
der which  they  have  respectively  scttleil."  At  the 
same  time,  and  on  report  of  the  same  committee, 
instructions  were  given  to  Gen.  St.  Clair,  then  Gover- 
nor of  the  North- Western  Territory,  and  then  on  the 
Mississippi  endeavoring  "to  extinguish  the  titles  of 
any  of  the  Indians  to  the  east  side  of  the  Mississip- 
pi above  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio,"  to  take  "Post  St. 
Vincennes"  on  his  route  back,  and  pursue  such  mea- 
sures as  were  directed  under  the  resolution  above 


122 


APPENDIX. 


In>' 

m 


(■^^ 


■-.Ifi     ■       I 


.■(■    'i'    I 


mentioned,  for  confirming  the  titles  of  the  inhabi- 
tants. So  far  from  being  enabled  to  treat  with  the 
Indians  for  their  lands  on  the  east  side  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi above  the  Ohio,  the  Indians  manifested  a 
belligerent  disposition,  and  actually  made  an  attack 
upon  the  settlement  near  Kahokia  while  the  Gover- 
nor was  there,  utterly  refusing  to  meet  in  Council 
with  him,  oither  there  or  at  Vincennes,  which  latter 
town  was  proposed  as  the  place  for  holding  their  de- 
liberations. War  seemed  inevitable ;  and  the  de- 
fenceless settlements  at  Kahokia,  Kaskaskia,  and 
Vincennes  seemed  destined  for  destruction.  Gov- 
ernor St.  Clair,  therefore,  without  carrying  out  the 
instructions  contained  in  the  resolution  above  reci- 
ted, left  the  Illinois  country  and  hastened  to  the 
headquarters  of  Gener;]  Harmar,  commanding  the 
troops  in  the  Western  Department,  having  his  head- 
quarters at  what  is  now  the  city  of  Cincinnati,  to 
concert  with  him  a  plan  of  an  expedition  against  the 
Indians  in  the  North- Western  Territory,  "which,  if 
approved  by  the  President,  might  disconcert  the  In- 
dians, and  place  the  settlements  in  safety."  Before 
leavmg  the  Illinois,  Gov.  St.  Clair  committed  the 
execution  of  the  resolutions  of  Congress  to  Mr.  Se- 
cretary Sargent,  then  at  Vincennes,  upon  whom  the 
powers  of  Governor  devolved  in  the  absence  of  Ge- 
neral St.  Clair,  who  proceeded  at  once  "to  lay  off  to 
the  ancient  inhabitants  of  the  Post  the  several  tracts 
which  they  rightfully  claimed,  and  which  may  have 
been  allotted  to  them  according  to  "the  laws  and 
usages  of  the  Governments,  French  and  English, 
under  which  they  respectively  claimed."     He  says 


PUBLIC  LANDS. 


123 


in  the  report  he  made  to  the  President,  "That  a 
petition  has  been  presented  by  the  inhabitants  of 
Vincennes,  praying  for  a  confirmation  of  the  land 
held  by  them  as  Commons,  containing  about  »ive 
thousand  acres,  which  had  been  about  thirtij  years 
under  fence,  which  was  intended  to  keep  their  cattle 
within  its  boundaries  and  out  of  their  wheat  fields. 
For  (says  he,)  contrary  to  the  usage  of  farmers  gen- 
erally, the  cattle  are  enclosed  and  tlie  cuUivatcd  lands 
are  left  at  largeV  Such  was  the  indifference  of  these 
primitive  inhabitants  in  reference  to  their  titlos,  that 
although  they  claimed  this  land  under  a  grant  of  one 
of  their  Commandants  a  half  a  century  before,  they 
had  not  a  scrap  of  paper  to  evidence  their  right  to 
it.  Congress,  however,  on  the  recommendation  of 
Col.  Sargent,  subsequently  confirmed  their  title,  and 
the  property  has  since  been  divided  and  sold  out. 

"I  have  (says  he)  another  petition,  signed  by  one 
hundred  atii  thirty-one  Canadian,  Frenoh  and  Amer- 
ican inhabitants,  all  enrolled  in  tha  militia,  set- 
ting forth  that  many  of  them  were  heads  of 
families,  in  1783,"  "that  they  were  willing 
to  perform  an  extraordinary  share  of  military 
duty,  anu  soliciting  Congress  to  make  them 
a  donation  of  lands."  "In  justice  to  the  peti- 
tioners (says  Col.  Sargent)  I  deem  it  incumbent  on 
me  to  observe,  that  the  commanding  officer  of  the 
regular  troops  here,  has  been  obliged,  in  some  in- 
stances, to  demand  their  services  for  convoys  of  pro- 
visions up  the  Wabash  river,  and  from  the  weakness 
of  t  he  garrison  and  the  present  difficulties  of  commu- 
nication with  other  posts  and  the  Ohio,  that  he  may 


124 


APPENDIX. 


have  frequent  occasion  for  their  aid,  which  I  have 
no  doubt  will  be  yielded  at  all  times  with  the  great- 
est cheerfulness."  By  an  act  of  Congress,  approved 
March  3d,  1791,  fxnir  hundred  acres  of  land  was  giv- 
en to  "each  of  those  persons  who,  in  1783,  were 
heads  of  families  at  Vincennes,  or  in  the  Illinois 
country  on  the  Mississippi,  and  who,  since  that  time, 
have  removed  from  one  of  said  places  to  the  other ; 
and  the  Governor  of  the  Territory  north-west  of 
the  Ohio  was  directed  to  lay  the  same  out  for  them , 
either  at  Vincennes  or  in  the  Illinois  country,  as 
they  shall  severally  elect."  These  are  what  p.re  now 
styled  "Donation  Tracts." 

Never  were  a  set  cf  men  more  justly  entitled  to 
this  grantthan  the  old  French  settlers  at  Vincennes 
and  on  the  Mississippi.  Whether  as  subjects  of  the 
"Grand  Monarque,"  or  of  George  the  2d  and  George 
the  3d — as  colonists  under  Virginia  or  citizens  of  the 
United  States — they  had  been  ioyal  and  patriotic. 
The  change  of  Government  seems  to  have  made  no 
great  difference  in  their  habits  or  manners;  and  as 
to  their  political  opinions,  isolated  as  they  were  from 
the  rest  of  the  world,  a  change  of  rulers  troubled 
them  but  little.  The  revolutions  of  empires  went 
^on  without  any  knowledge  of  theirs,  until  it 
was  made  known  to  them  by  a  personal  acquaint- 
ance with  the  French  mousguetaire,  the  English  gre- 
nadier, the  American  rifleman,  or  the  United  States' 
regular.  Submissive  and  obedient,  they  yielded  to 
the  powers  that  were,  made  no  complaint,  offered 
no  resistance,  cultivated  their  common  fields,  sang, 
danced,  smoked  their  pipes,  were  regular  at  the 


PUBLIC  LANDS. 


126 


morning  matin  and  evening  vespers,  content  to  take 
this  world  as  it  went,  and  satisfied  with  the  next  if 
no  worse  than  this.  No  people,  perhaps,  on  the  face 
of  the  globe  were  more  contented  or  happy  But  a 
new  generation  has  arisen,  and  the  progress  of 
"Young  America,"  it  is  to  be  feared,  is  likely,  ere 
this  century  is  ended,  to  spoil  their  ancient  posses- 
sions and  overturn  the  land-marks,  which  once 
marked  the  resting  place  of  these  "sons  of  St. 
Louis" — once  extending  from  the  Lakes  to  the  Mis- 
sissippi, through  the  rich  valleys  of  the  Wabash  and 
the  Illinois. 

In  addition  to  the  grant  of  four  hundred  acres  of 
land  made  by  Congress  "to  the  heads  of  families  at 
Vincennes  in  1783,"  another  grant  was  made  by  the 
act  above  referred  to,  "of  a  tract  of  land,  not  exceed- 
ing one  hundred  acres,  to  each  person  who  had  not 
obtained  any  donation  of  land  from  the  United 
States,  and  who,  on  i\io  first  cJaj/  of  August,  one  thou- 
sand seven  hundred  and  ninety/,  was  enrolled  in  the 
militia  at  Vincennes  or  the  Illinois  country ,.and  had 
done  militia  duty.  (See  note  in  Appendix.)  The 
several  grants  thus  made  are  embraced  in  three 
claims:  1st.  Donations  to  heads  of  families,  who 
WLTO  here  in  1783.  2dly,  ISurret/s  under  grants  or 
concessions  made  by  the  former  Trench  and  Eng- 
lish commandants.  3dly,  Locations  under  wliat  were 
called  militia  rights,  and  which  have  been  confirmed 
by  Congress.  I  cannot  close  this  long  note  without 
introducing  one  more  extract  from  the  letter  of  Col. 
Sargent,  Secretary  of  the  Territory,  and  acting  Go>'- 
ernor,  to  Gen.  Washington,  then  President  of  the 


126 


APPENDIX. 


I 

1 1 


4U 


United  States,  of  the  date  of  July  31st,  1790,  as  evi> 
dence,  if  any  were  waiting,  of  the  patriotism  of  the 
citizens  of  the  "Post,"  the  sacrifices  they  had  made, 
the  losses  they  had  incurred  on  behalf  of  the  United 
States,  9101^  one  dollar  of  which  has  been  ^  aid.  I  do 
not  speak  of  the  depreciated  currency  which  they 
received  in  the  continental  paper  of  Virginia, 
brought  out  by  Clark  and  his  troops,  the  only  mo- 
ney he  had  in  his  military  chest,  to  conquer  an  em- 
pire  defended  by  some  of  the  best  troops  in  theEng- 
lis  service  during  the  Revolution,  and  which  misera- 
ble trash,  to  this  day  unredeemed  and  worthless,  was 
received  dollar  for  dollar  at  par  by  the  French  inha- 
bitants at  Vincennes  and  Kaskaskia  for  supplies, 
without  which  Clark  could  not  have  held  the  coun- 
try a  week;  but  of  those  advances,  in  "Piastres," 
silver  dollars^  made  by  Vigo  and  others,  including 
Father  Gibault,  and  without  which  advances  in 
stiver^  Clark  could  never  have  marched  from  Kas- 
kaskia to  Vincennes,  conquered  the  place,  and  made 
Hamilton  and  his  troops  prisoners,  adding  by  that 
conquest,  and  that  alone,  live  great  States  to  our 
Confederacy.  Yet  of  the  sum  of  nearly  nine  thou- 
sand dollars  in  specie  furnished  Clark  in  the  cam- 
paign in  the  Illinois,  in  1778-9,  and  for  which  Clark 
gave  him  bills  on  the  "agent  of  Virginia,"  that  came 
back  protested  "for  want  of  funds,"  Vigo  nor  his 
heirs  to  this  day  has  never  got  a  dollar,  cither  from 
Virginia  or  the  United  States.  So  with  the  good 
priest,  "Father  Gibault,"  who,  with  the  same  view 
of  aiding  Clark  and  benefitting  the  American 
cause,  advanced  him  seven  thousand  eight  hundred 


PUBUC  LANDS. 


137 


Ivures,  French  money— «qual  to  fifUm  himdred  and 
sixty  dollars  of  ours — "who  parted  with  his  tithes 
and  beasts  only  to  set  an  example  to  his  parishion- 
ers" to  make  equal  sacrifices  for  the  American 
cause;  and  who,  for  the  want  of  this  very  money, 
(see  his  letter  to  Gen.  St.  Clair,  Note  1,)  "  had  to 
sell  two  good  slaves,  who  would  have  been  the 
support  of  his  old  age,  and  for  want  of  whom  he 
was  dependent  on  the  public."  This  good  man 
and  pure  patriot,  or  his  heirs  or  descendants,,  never, 
to  this  day,  have  received  for  these  advances  one 
dime,  cither  from  Virginia,  who  received  the  bene- 
fit of  these  advances,  or  the  United  States,  who 
acquired  the  territory  "without  fee  or  reward;" 
and  who,  from  the  sale  of  it,  has  placed  untold 
millions  in  her  treasury.  I  will  conclude  this  long 
note  by  a  short  extract  from  the  concluding  part 
of  Gov.  Sargent's  letter  to  Gen.  Washington,  from 
"^''incenncs,  of  the  date  Jul}'  31st,  1790: 

"Before  I  close  this  letter.  Sir,  I  must  take  the 
liberty  of  representing  to  Congress,  by  desire  of  the 
citizens  of  this  countv,  and  a  matter  which  I  hum- 
bly  conceive  they  should  be  informed  of,  that  there 
are,  not  only  at  this  place,  but  in  the  several  villa- 
ges upon  the  Mississippi,  considerable  claims  for 
supplies  before  and  since  1783,  which  no  person  as 
yet  has  been  authorized  to  attend  to,  and  which  is 
very  injurious  to  the  interests  and  feelings  of  men, 
who  seem  to  have  been  exposed  to  a  variety  of  dis- 
tresses and  impositions  by  characters  pretending  to 
have  acted  under  the  orders  of  the  Government. — 
The  people  of  Vincennes  have  requested  me  to 
make  known  their  sentiments  of  fidelity  and  attach- 


128 


APPENDIX. 


:m 


i-: 


ment  to  the  United  States,  and  the  satisfaction  they 
feel  in  being  received  into  their  protection,  which  I 
beg  leave  to  communicate  in  their  own  words,  by 
the  copy  of  an  address  presented  to  me  on  the  23d 
instant." 

True  to  theii      bits  and  instincts,  these  "children 
of  St.  Louis"  were  transferred  from  one  Govern- 
ment to  another — to  Great  Britain,  to  Virginia,  to 
the  United  States — ^without  a  murmur  and  without  a 
thought  of  the  future.  The  records  of  the  Land  Office 
here  show,  that  after  cession  of  the  country  by  France 
to  Great  Britain,  in  1763,  they  took  the  oath  of  al- 
legiance before   "Rumsey,  Sub-Lieutenant  of  his 
Majesty's  42d  regiment,  and  Judge  Advocate  of  the 
Province  of  Illinois,  in  1708,"  sent  out  here,  as  he 
himself  asserts  on  the  record,   "with  power  and  au- 
thority to  examine  the  land  titles  of  the  Province  of 
Illinois,  and  administer  the  oath  of  allegiance  to  its 
inhabitants."     To  Helms,  £=ent  here  bv  Clark   in 
1778.     To  Hamilton,    who   captured  Helms,  and 
retook  the  place  in  December  of  the  same  year.    To 
(nark  in  1779.      To   Harmar,  Jilt.  Clair  and  Sar- 
geant,  on  behalf  of  the  United  States.     In  the  short 
space  of  twenty  years,  what  changes  were  effected 
in  the  political  condition  of  the  inhabitants  of  the 
"Post!"    We  have  no  parallel  on  the  continent.   Al- 
ways brave,  always  obedient,  always  loyal,  the  idea 
of  resistence  "to  the  powers  that  be"  never  entered 
the  head  of  the  "ancient  inhabitant.'     He  smoked 
his  pipe,  looked  at  the  change  with  indifference,  and 
acknowledged  the  power  and  authority  of  his  "com- 
mandant," whether  he  was  a  Sub-Lieutenant  of  liis 


TEBRITORIAL  ACQUISITION. 


i2d 


Majesty's  42d  regiment,  a  Captain  of  Virginia  Ri- 
flemen, or  a  Commander-in-Chief  of  the  United 
States  troops  for  the  Western  Department.  "2W 
le  meme  chose'^  was  the  ready  reply,  as  he  took  the 
oath,  kissed  the  book,  shrugged  his  shoulders,  and 
gave  an  additional  whiff  from  his  pipe.  Happy^ 
thrice  happy  people,  in  whose  brains  the  treasona- 
ble doctrines  of  secession  or  nuUifioation  never  en- 
tered. 


V. 


TERRITORIAL  ACaUISITION. 

TDK  BXTRNSTON  OF  OUR  TF.RRITORIA f.  LIMITS  TO  TUB  MtSSTSSIPPI  AT  TIIB 
TUBATY  OP  PRAOK  IN  17(3— 0AII9K»  OPRKATINQ  TO  PttODCOB  THAT  SX- 
TBH3I0N— KREX^nON  OF  F0RT3  ItY  OLARK-SUftVEYS. 

The  foresight  of  Mr.  Jefferson,  even  during  the 
most  arduous  struggles  of  the  Revolution,  had  recog- 
nized with  the  eye  of  the  statesman,  the  future  of 
that  vast  region  of  country  lying  between  the  Miami 
and  the  Mississippi,  the  Lakes  and  the  Ohio,  deno- 
minated the  "North-Western  Territory,"  then  the 
property  of  Virginia,  ceded  by  her  to  the  United 
States,  and  now  comprising  the  four  great  States  of 
Indiana,  Illinois,  Michigan  and  Wisconsin.  Not- 
withstanding the  trials  and  difficulties  which  sur- 
rounded him— notwithstanding  the  cares  and  trou- 
bles attendant  upon  his  office  as  Governor  of  Vir- 
ginia, during  the  most  trying  times  of  the  Revolu- 
tion, and  at  a  time  when  not  only  the  9oil  of  his 


130 


APPENDIX. 


iK  *■ , 


:!"^t''i 


native  State  was  in  possession  of  the  foe,  but  the 
seat  of  Government  was  migratory,  as  the  British 
troops  advanced  or  retreated — though  he  himself 
was  a  fugitive  from  Monticello,   which  had  been 
taken  possession  of  by  Tarleton  and  his  troops,  he 
never  lost  sight  of  the  great  western  empire,  above 
described,  which,  thanks  to  the  bravery  of  Clark 
and  his  gallant  followers,  had,  by  the  conquest  of 
Vincennes,  become  the  property  of  Virginia.     It 
was  in  the  year  1779,  after  the  capture  of  Hamilton, 
and  when  Clark  had  returned  to  Williamsburgli, 
then  the  seat  of  government  of  the  "Ancient  Do- 
minion," that  strong  hopes  were   entertained  of 
peace  between  the  Mother  Country  and  the  Colo- 
nies,  through  the  mediation  of  Spain;    and  Con- 
gress, in  settling  the  basis  upon  which  a  treaty,  if 
effected,  was  to  be  made,  established  the  uti  possidetis 
as  the  only  terms  on  which  a  satisfactory  arrange- 
ment could  be  made.     The  object  of  Mr.  Jefferson 
was  to  secure,  by  actual  possession,  the  immense 
Western  Territory  claimed  by  Virginia,  to  its  ut- 
most limits,  extending  to  the  east  side  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi,    He  therefore  "engaged  a  scientific  corps 
to  proceed  under  au  escort  to  the  Mississippi,  and 
ascertain,  by  celestial  observations,  the  point  on  that 
river  intersected  by  the  latitude  thirty-six  degrees 
thirty  minutes,  (36  deg.  30  min.,)  the  southern 
limit  of  the  State,  and  to  measure  its  distance  to 
the  Ohio."    General  Clark,  fresh  from  the  field  of  his 
victory— the  emptor  of  Hamilton,  and  the  "Post," 
which  had  secured  this  immense  Territory  to  his 
native  State— was  selected  by  Mr.  Jefferson  to  con- 


TERRITORIAL  ACQUISITION. 


131 


duct  the  military  operations  in  that  quarter.  The 
selection  was  a  fit  and  appropriate  one;  no  better 
could  have  been  made.  He  was  instructed,  as  soon  as 
the  southern  line  on  the  Mississippi  should  be  ascer- 
tained, "to  select  a  strong  position  near  that  pointy 
to  establish  there  a  fort  and  garrison;  thence  to  ex- 
tend his  conquests  northward  to  the  Lakes,  erecting 
forts  at  different  points,  which  might  serve  as  mon- 
uments of  actual  possession,  besides  affording  pro- 
tection to  that  portion  of  the  country."  Under  these 
orders,  Fort  Jefferson^  in  compliment  to  the  founder 
of  the  enterprise,  was  erected  and  garrisoned  on  the 
Mississippi,  a  few  miles  above  the  southern  limit. 
The  result  of  these  operations — of  this  expedition 
of  Clark — was  the  addition,  to  the  chartered  limits 
of  Virginia,  of  that  immense  region  known  as  the 
"Xorth- Western  Territory,"  and  comprehending 
the  {States  above  mentioned.  At  the  treaty  of  peace 
with  Great  Britain,  in  1783,  the  only  pretence  of 
claim  set  up  by  our  Commissioners  to  this  vast  em- 
pire, was  the  conquest  of  it  by  Clark,  and  the  estab- 
lishment of  the  forts  and  garrisons  to  the  Lakes  by 
himself  and  trooj^s,  "serving  as  the  monuments  of  our 
possession,"  and,  carrying  out  the  rule  of  ''^uti lyossi- 
detis,^'  was  adopted  as  the  basis  of  our  negotiations. 
The  British  Commissioners  had  to  yield  to  evidences 
so  apparent  of  our  use  and  occupation,  and  the  Mis- 
sissippi became  our  boundary  on  the  west  and  the 
Lakes  on  the  north,  through  the  wisdom  of  Jeffer- 
son and  the  valor  and  enterprise  of  Clark.  But 
where  now  are  these  monuments  of  title? — these 
emblems   of  our   power?— these    land-marks   of 


132 


APPENDIX. 


^1, 


pi 
M 


III 
lit 


our  posseasiona  nearly  seventy  years  since?    Eclio 
answers— where?    Their  very  foundations  are  re- 
moved.   The  tall  grass  of  the  prairie  grows  over 
their  dilapidated  bastions.    The  plough-share  of  the 
husbandman  has  furrowed  their  parade  grounds; 
and  the  hardy  pioneer  of  the  west  has  long  since 
preempted  the  localities  upon  which  they  stood. 
More  than  one  generation  of  the  "Sons  of  the 
West,"  who  have  occupied  these  fields,  have  been 
gathered  to  their  fathers;  while  they,  as  well  as  their 
present  descendants,  have  been  for  the  most  part 
ignorant  of  the  valor  by  which  they  were  won,  or 
the  patriotism  and  wisdom  which  secured  them« 
The  names  of  Jefierson  and  Clark  should  have  been 
household  words  in  every  log  cabin,  between  the 
Miami  and  the  "Father  of  Waters,"  and  tho  pre- 
sent owners  of  these  countless  acres  should  never 
forget  the  memory  of  those,  by  wliose  courage  and 
peril  this  immense  empire  was  added  to  the  Union. 
To  no  State  but  Virginia  is  the  West  indebted  for 
this  priceless  treasure.    It  is  her  child;  and  cold  he 
the  tongue  and  palsied  the  arm  that  would  not 
speak  our  gratitude  for  her  princely  gift,  or  atrike  a 
bloto,  if  required,  in  defence  of  her  honor  and  her 
rights.  I  very  much  doubt  whether  any  other  State 
in  the  old  Confederacy,  would,  under  the  circum- 
stances, have  made  such  a  donation  "for  the  com- 
mon benefit." 


VI. 


lA  BALM'S  DEFEAT. 

The  expedition  of  La  Balm,  undertaken  in  the 
year  1780,  from  the  "Illinois  Country,"  against  De» 
troit,  then  a  military  post,  and  occupied  by  the 
British,  I  have  nerer  seen  noticed  in  any  work  con- 
nected with  the  early  history  of  the  North-West, 
except  a  short  notice  of  it  in  Mr.  Dillon's  first  vol* 
nmo  of  the  History  of  Indiana,  where  ho  briefly 
describes  the  fact^  and  mentions  the  defeat  of  his 
party.    As  a  portion  of  the  troops  engaged  in  that 
expedition  were  raised  at  the  "Post,"  and  many  of 
its  "ancient  inhabitants"  were  killed  by  the  Indians, 
at  the  battle  fought  with  them  by  La  Balm,  near 
the  present  site  of  Port  Wayne,  I  have  thought  all 
the  information  to  be  derived  from  the  old  records 
of  the  Land  Office  here,  in  regard  to  it,  may  not  be 
uninteresting.     It  is  to  be  regretted  that  a  more  par- 
ticular account  of  the  expedition  cannot  be  furnish- 
ed.   Of  the  few  parties  who  were  engaged  in  it  and 
made  their  escape,  none  now  survive;  and  we  have 
no  record  of  it  but  what  appears  from  the  deposi- 
tions taken  to  prove  the  actual  settlement  of  parties 
resident  here  before  the  year  1783,  and  claiming  the 
donation  given  to  the  "heads  of  families"  at  Vin- 
cennes  previous  to  that  year,  of  four  hundred  acres 
of  land,  as  provided  for  by  the  act  of  Congress,     ^ 


134 


APPENDIX. 


rf'j  p 

k  > 
\m 

M 

Ml 


ti  / 


lift 


\m 


In  looking  over  the  old  records  of  the  Land  Office, 
I  find  that  among  other  testimony  taken  before  the 
Commissioners  appointed  to  investigate  land  claims, 
in  the  year  1805,  is  the  following  deposition  taken 
in  the  case  of  "Antonie  Rembault's  Heirs,"  claim- 
ing a  donation  tract  in  right  of  their  ancestor: 

"  Francis  Langeiidoc  being  sworn,  deposeth  and 
saith,  That  Antoine  Rembault  was  here  at  Vin- 
cennes  when  the  Americans  took  the  country;  that 
he  was  a  single  man,  and  lived  with  his  father,  until 
his  father  left  Vincennes.  After  the  departure  of 
his  father,  which  was  before  the  Americans  took  the 
country,  he  lived  with  his  brothers  in  the  house  left 
by  their  father;  that  he  was  killed  in  the  expedition 
of  La  Balm  against  Detroit;  i\i2ii  the  children  lived 
altogether  in  their  father's  house  before  Rembault 
went  on  La  Balm's  expedition." 

^''Francis  Viao,  being  sworn  in  the  same  case,  de- 
poseth as  to  the  time  when  Helms  and  Clark  came 
to  Vincennes,  and  when  La  Balm  carried  his  ex- 
pedition against  Detroit,  says,  That  Captain  Helms 
took  Vincennes  in  June  or  July,  1778,  that  Ilamil- 
ton  took  Capt.  Helms,  and  retook  Vincennes,  about 
the  22d  of  February,  1779;  that  La  Balm  started 
on  his  expedition  against  Detroit  about  the  begin- 
ning of  August,  1780,  from  the  Illinois;  that  depo- 
nent has  been  informed  and  believes,  that  La 
Balm  was  defeated  in  September  of  that  year,  near 
where  Fort  Wayne  now  stands." 

The  expedition  of  La  Balm  against  Detroit  was 
organized  at  the  "Illinois,"  probably  at  Kaskaskia  or 
Cahokia,  where  he  enlisted  about  fifty  men,    and 


LA  balm's  defeat. 


136 


de- 


marched  to  Vincennes  for  more  recruits.  What 
number  he  gathered  here  is  unknown.  It  is  pro- 
bable his  whole  force  amounted  to  about  one  hundred 
men.  The  troops  marched  to  the  present  site  of 
Fort  Wayne,  where  they  seized  the  goods  of  the 
British  traders,  who  had  establishments  there,  deal- 
ing with  the  Indians  for  peltries.  It  is  probable 
that  this  was  the  origin  of  the  attack  made  upon 
them  by  the  Miamis  at  their  encampment  on  the 
Biver  Abolte,  a  small  stream  emptying  into  the 
Wabash  above  Fort  Wayne.  The  whole  party,  but 
with  few  exceptions,  were  massacred  There  are  a 
number  of  cases  on  the  old  records,  where  the  claim- 
ants, in  seeking  a  grant  of  land  to  which  they  were 
entitled  in  right  of  their  ancestors  as  "Heads  of  Fami- 
lies in  Vincennes,"  previous  to  the  year  1783,  state 
in  their  memorials,  and  make  proof,  that  those  un- 
der whom  they  claim  "were  killed  in  the  expedition 
of  La  Balm  against  Detroit."  The  "Post,"  judging 
from  the  records,  must  have  met  with  a  serious  loss 
in  the  number  of  its  inhabitants,  by  La  Balm's 
defeat.  Great,  however,  as  the  loss  was,  it  affords 
another  proof  of  the  loyalty  and  devotion  of  the 
"ancient  inhabitants"  to  their  lately  adopted  Gov- 
ernment, and  their  zeal  and  patriotism  on  every 
occasion  where  they  could  in  any  way  benefit  the 
Americans  in  their  struggle  for  independence. 


r\ 


I        y 


'i'..     .' 


VII. 


/til 


i 


llr-i* 


llflS^ 


ANCIENT  GRANT. 

The  following  is  the  oldest  written  grant  of  land 
to  be  found  among  the  papers  and  grants  in  th* 
Vincennes  Land  Office.  I  copy  from  the  origi- 
nal: 

"Nous,  St.  Louis  Ange,  Capitaine  et  Comman- 
dant pour  le  lioy,  au  poste  Yincenne,  avons  con- 
cede a  Marie  Joseph  Richard,  veuve,  une  terro  de 
sept  arpent  de  faces,  sur  cinquanl  de  profondeur, 
situe  au  bas  du  petit  roche,  tenant  des  deux  cote  a 
desterres  non  concede,  la  presente  et  en  reconnois- 
sance  des  bons  services,  qu'il  a  rendu,  a  sa  Majeste^ 
en  servan  d'interprete  au  Sauvage,  pour  le  detach- 
ment de  Monsieur  Aubry,  venant  des  Illinois  pour  lo 
Detroit,  lui  ayant  concede  pour  son  utilite;  et  avons 
signe  au  poste,  le  quinzieme  Juin,  mille  scptc  cent 
cinquante  neuf.  ST.  ANGE." 

Which,  translated,  is  as  follows: 

"Wc,  Louis  St.  Ange,  Captain  and  Commandant 
for  the  King  at  Post  Vincennes,  have  granted  to 
Marie  Joseph  Richard,  widow,  a  tract  of  land,  seven 
arpents  front  and  fifty  arpcnts  deep,  situated  below 
the  Little  Rock,  bounded  on  two  sides  by  land  not 
granted.  The  present  is  in  remembrance  of  the 
good  services  which  he  (her  husband)  has  rendered 
his  Majesty  in  serving  as  Indian  interpreter  for  the 


"WESTERN  SUN," 


137 


detachment  of  Monsieur  Aubry  coming  from  the 
Illinois,  and  destined  for  Detroit,  granted  as  her 
own.    Signed  at  the  Post,  the  16th  of  June,  1769," 

Ninetynaeven  years  since! 


a 


VIII. 

WESTERN  SUN. 


9> 


TBI  rinST  PAI'KR  PUINTED    IN    INDIANA    TElJRlTrtnY— 'Iir.   KDllOK— ANB 
rilK  UIVFICUIiTIES  ATTKNDINU  ITa  JuM'AULlMlMKM. 

A  work  professing  to  bo  a  history  of  the  settle- 
ment and  early  history  of  Vincennes  would  be  very 
imperfect  indeed,  did  it  not  give  at  least  a  passing 
notice  of  the  first  newspaper  press  established  in  the 
place;  and  especially  would  it  be  an  unpardonable 
omission,  when  that  event  is  almost  co-eval  with  the 
advent  to  the  place  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  race.  The 
establishment  of  a  newspaper  in  a  place  is  an  im- 
portant era  in  its  history.  The  press  in  modern 
times  has  become  the  great  conduit  through  which 
intelligence  is  generally  disseminated  among  the 
masses.  It  brings  communities  in  close  contact 
with  each  other,  and  tends  in  an  eminent  degree  to 
enlighten,  refine  and  elevate  the  character  of  the 
masses  generally.  Sometime  in  the  year  1803,  my 
old  friend,  Elihu  Stout,  at  that  time  a  citizen  of 
Kentucky,  determined  to  emigrate  to  the  Indiana 
Territory,  and  commence  the  publication  of  a  news- 


P: 


138 


APPENDIX. 


il',> 


ii 


mi 


paper  at  Vincenncs,  at  that  time  the  capitol  of  the 
Territory.  The  entire  Territory  was  then  a  wilder- 
ness, with  no  roads  or  other  avenues  of  communica- 
tion, and  the  greatest  difficulties  and  dangers  had 
to  be  encountered  in  traveling  from  one  part  of  the 
Territory  to  another.  The  settlements  were  few 
and  far  between,  and  almost  the  entire  Territory 
was  yet  in  the  possession  of  the  Indians.  It  was 
at  that  time  an  undertaking  of  no  easy  performance? 
and  any  individual,  to  be  successful  in  it,  must  com- 
bine in  an  eminent  degree  the  qualities  of  firmness 
and  perseverance.  Fortunately,  Mr.  Stout  possess- 
ed these  qualities,  and  was  not  deterred  on  ac- 
count of  the  difficulties  in  his  way;  and  no  sooner 
had  he  determined  upon  the  enterprise  than  he  com- 
menced preparations  for  executing  it.  For  this  pur- 
pose, about  the  last  of  March,  1804,  he  purchased  a 
press  and  type  in  Frankfort,  Kentucky,  and  these, 
with  a  small  amount  of  printing  material,  were 
shipped  on  the  Kentucky  i  iver  in  a  small  craft  for 
Vincennes.  Mr.  S.  immediately  set  out  on  horse- 
back, and  reached  Vincennes  on  the  4th  of  April, 
1804,  and  'J)rocured  a  room  for  the  reception  of  the 
type  and  press,  which  did  not  arrive  until  sometime 
in  June,  having  been  transported  all  the  way  by 
water  on  boats  propelled  by  hand.  As  soon  as  they 
arrived,  however,  Mr.  Stout  commenced  prepara- 
tions for  issuing  a  paper,  which  was  called  th«  "In- 
diana Gazette,"  and  on  the  4th  day  of  July,  1804, 
the  first  number  of  that  paper  was  issued,  and  its 
publication  continued  with  all  possible  regularity 
for  about  eighteen  months,  when  its  publication  was 


"western  sun." 


139 


suspended,  on  account  of  an  accident  by  fire,  until 
other  materials  could  be  procured.  These  were 
procured,  as  soon  as  circumstances  would  permit, 
from  Kentucky,  and  the  publication  of  the  paper 
was  resumed,  its  name  being  changed  to  that  of  the 
"Western  Sun."  This  wa?  the  first  newspaper 
established  in  the  Indiana  Territory,  now  compris- 
ing the  four  great  States  of  i.idiana,  Illinois,  Mi- 
chigan and  Wisconsin,  and  the  second  in  all  that 
district  of  country  known  as  the  "Territory  north- 
west of  the  Ohio."  Its  publication  was  regularly 
continued  bv  Mr.  Stout  until  the  month  of  Novem- 
ber,  1845j  when  he  was  appointed  post-master  at 
this  place,  and  sold  out  his  press  and  closed  his 
labors  as  an  editor.  The  publication  of  the  paper 
for  many  years  was  continued  under  many  and  great 
disadvantages.  The  Territory  was  very  sparsely 
settled,  and  a  large  majority  of  the  inhabitants  of 
this  place  were  French,  who  could  not  read,  and  as- 
sisted in  no  way  to  support  the  paper.  All  his 
printing  materials  had  to  be  transported  from 
Georgetown,  Kentucky,  that  being  the  nearest  point 
where  they  could  be  procured.  And  there  being 
no  public  conveyances  at  the  time,  he  was  com- 
pelled to  provide  means  for  transporting  them  him- 
self. And  for  many  years  he  was  compelled  to 
transport  all  his  printing  materials  on  horse-back, 
taking  with  him  three  horses,  one  for  riding  and  two 
for  packing.  But  notwithstanding  these  difliculties 
Mr.  Stout  continued  the  regular  publication  of  his 
paper  for  upwards  of  forty  years.  He  has  in  his 
possession  regular  files  of  his  paper,  bound  in  vol- 


140 


APPENDIX. 


I 


uines,  which  contain  much  interesting  and  valuable 
information.  I  am  happy  to  say  that  the  venerable 
editor,  the  "Nestor"  of  the  Western  press,  is  still 
alive,  respected  and  beloved,  and  holding  the  office 
of  Recorder  of  Deeds,  an  office  conferred  on  him  by 
the  almost  unanimous  vote  of  his  fellow-citizens< 
Long  may  he  live  to  retain  it. 


Mil 

m 


r  i. 


IX. 


CATHOLIC  CHURCH. 


Hi 


'11 


\m 


THR  CATirou*!  ciirnrn  at  vincknnks— its  kari.y  kstabmsiimknt  anj> 

I'KOGKI  8S-irs  INKI.IiKNCK  Ol'ON   'J  UK  INDIAN  TltlliKS  ALUNG  TIIK  VAL- 
LBV  vV  TUB  WABAMI. 

It  is  not  beyond  the  memory  of  the  "  oldest  in- 
habitant" of  the  Post — indeed  it  is  within  the  recol- 
lection of  all  who  dwelt  here  forty  years  since — that 
fronting  on  Water,  and  running  back  on  Church 
street,  towards  the  present  cathedral,  there  was 
a  phiin  building,  with  a  rough  exterior,  built  of  up- 
right posts,  "chunked  and  daubed,"  to  use  an  arch- 
itectural expression,  purely  western,  with  a  rough 
coat  of  cement  on  the  outside;  in  width  about 
twenty  feet;  in  length  about  sixty;  one  story  high, 
with  a  small  bellfry,  and  an  equally  small  bell,  now 
used  at  the  more  elegant  and  symmetrical  building- 
one  for  architectural  design  and  beauty  not  exceed- 
ed in  the  State-^the  Cathedral;  and  which  yet 


CATHOLIC  CHURCH. 


141 


rings  out  the  "angelus"  as  it  had  done  for  the  last 
hundred  years,  calling  the  descendants  of  those  who 
worshipped  here  forty  years  since,  to  the  daily  reli- 
gious duties  prescribed  by  their  ancient  church.   The 
building  I  have  described— placed  in  the  cemetery 
where  the  various  mortuary  memorials,  which  piety 
and  affection  had  dedicated  to  those  who  had  gone 
before  them,  headed  with  the  symbol  of  their  faith, 
and  for  the  most  part  of  wood,  the  inscriptions  from 
moss  and  time  almost  illegible — was  the  ancient 
church  of  "St.  Francis  Xavier."   When  built,  and  by 
whom,  it  is  impossible,  at  this  late  period,  to  deter- 
mine.   There  can  be  little  doubt,  hcvcver,   that 
it  was  erected  under   the  auspioos  of  the  Rev- 
erend Father,  who  accompanied  lae  French  troops 
here  in  the  early  part  of  the  eighteenth  century, 
and  was,   without  doubt,    the  only  church  used 
here  for  Catholic  worship  until  the  foundations 
of  the  new  edifice,  which  has  superseded  it,  were 
laid,    and  that   building    prepared    for  worship 
Around    that  primitive   church  on  Sundays  and 
Fast  days  might  be  seen  the  patriarch  of  his  flock, 
with  blanket  capot — a  blue  cotton  handkerchief 
around  his  head,  with  a  pipe  in  his  mouth,  and  with 
his  family  seated  in  chairs,  in  his  untired  cart, 
which  had  never  known  the  use  of  iron,  drawn  by 
a  Canadian  pony,  and  conveying  his  generation,  as 
his  fathers  before  him  had  done  theirs^  to  the  wor- 
ship of  the  same  God,  and  in  the  same  manner,  and 
alter  the  same  creed  as  their  ancestors,  for  centuries 
before,  had  worshipped  in  "La  Belle  France,"  from 
whose  shores  they  had  been  transplanted  to  those 


:i 


142 


APPENDIX. 


i 


Hi:; 

l! 
P 

K 


n 


K''' 


of  the  St.  Lawrence.  If  perfect  and  sincere  belief 
in  the  creed  they  professed,  an  ardent  and  sincere 
devotion  to  that  Church,  a  strict  observance  of  all 
the  rites  and  ceremonies  prescribed  by  that  church, 
the  regular  attendance  on  its  ministrations,  a  faith 
in  its  teachings  and  doctrines  that  knew  no  change 
constitute  the  Christian — and  without  these  no 
man  can  be  one — the  French  population  at  Vin- 
cennes  were  a  religious  people  during  the  last  cen- 
tury, whatever  may  be  their  condition  now.  It  is 
true  that  the  services  of  morning  mass  being  over, 
they  sought  recreation  and  pleasure  wherever  they 
could  find  it,  and  sometimes  in  a  mode  which,  to  the 
Puritan  notions  of  a  J^ew  England  man,  might  not 
seem  strictly  in  accordance  with  his  conception  of 
the  observance  of  the  Sabbath. 

In  all  the  private  relations  of  life  they  were  uj)- 
right,  honorable  and  honest.  Hospitable  to  an 
extent  probably  unknown  among  people  of  a  differ- 
ent origin,  they  bid  you  welcome  to  their  habita- 
tions, and  were  always  glad  to  make  you  their 
guest.  For  many  years  after  the  Americans  had 
taken  possession  of  the  country,  there  were  no  tav- 
erns, and  "the  stranger  within  their  gates"  was  as 
much  domiciled  among  them  during  his  stay,  as  if 
he  had  been  one  of  the  family. 

It  is  to  bo  regretted  that  the  history  of  this  small 
chapel,  dedicated  to  "St.  Francis  Xavier,"  its  pa- 
tron saint,  has  not  been  preserved  in  the  archives 
of  that  church  now  remaining.  They  open  only  as 
late  as  April  21st,  1749.  That  before  that  time, 
the  chapel  had  been  used  for  worship,  and  aside 


I 


CATHOLIC  CHURCH. 


143 


from  its  regular  services,  births,  baptisms  and  deaths 
had  been  noted  on  its  records,  and  memoranda  kept, 
there  can  be  no  doubt;  for  as  early  as  1712,  at 
least,  Father  Mermet  had  been  sent  here  as  mis- 
sionary, and  had  the  celebrated  discussion  with  the 
Indian  medicine  man,  as  noted  in  the  address,  and 
from  the  first  settlement  in  the  Valley  of  the  Wa- 
bash by  the  French,  there  had  been  a  missionary 
here,  as  well  as  at  "Ouiatanon,"  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Wea,  just  below  the  present  site  of  Lafayette.  I 
myself  have  seen,  many  years  since,  a  manuscript 
in  Indian  and  French,  of  the  ritual  and  prayers  of 
the  Catholic  church,  made  by  the  Jesuits  at  Ouia- 
tanon,  and  a  conversational  dictionary  in  the  same 
language  (the  Miami),  made  at  a  very  early  period, 
while  stationed  among  the  Indians  on  the  upper 
Wabash,  and  both  in  good  preservation.  What 
became  of  them  I  never  have  learned.  They  were 
preserved  in  the  library  of  the  church  at  this  place. 
The  settlement  at  Ouiatanon  was  broken  up — the 
troops  came  here,  while  a  portion  of  the  inhabitants 
returned  to  Canada,  and  part  came  to  Vincennes. 
It  is  a  singular  fact,  but  no  less  true,  and  highly 
creditable  to  the  zeal,  the  learning,  and  the  piety  of 
the  priests  here,  that  the  modest  and  impretending 
log  chapel,  which  I  have  attempted  to  describe, 
sent  out  from  its  altar  four  of  the  Bishops  of  the 
American  Catholic  Church.     They  were 

"Benedict  Joseph  Flaget,  Bishop  of  Bardstown 
and  Louisville; 

"Arch  Bishop  Blanc,  of  New  Orleans; 

"Jean  Jean,  his  colleague  here  in  the  church  in 


144 


APPENDIX. 


V'. 

hi 


w 


dl'l 


it 


1818,  and  appointed  Bishop  of  New  Orleans,  but 
declined  the  appointment;  i 

"Bishop  Chabrat,  Coadjutor  Bishop  of  Bardstown 
and  Louisville." 

In  addition  to  these,  two  of  the  priests  who  have 
officiated  at  the  cathedral,  have  been  raised  to  the 
high  honor  of  Bishops : 

"La  'Hailandiere,  Bishop  of  Vincennes; 

"Martin,  Bishop  of  Nachitoches,  Louisiana." 

So  that  sic  dignitaries  of  the  Catholic  church  of 
tho  United  States,  holding  high  rank  and  character, 
have  officiated  as  priests  at  Post  Vincennes,  and 
tliree  out  of  that  number  commenced  their  clerical 
career  here. 

It  would  bo  an  interesting  sketch,  if  we  had  the 
facts,  to  trace  the  history  of  the  church  of  St.  Francis 
Xavier,  from  tho  commencement  of  the  settlement 
of  the  "Post,"  down  to  the  present  time,  but  we  are 
unable  to  do  so.  We  have  no  records,  and  few 
legends.  It  is  now  I  think  a  matter  of  history,  that 
the  Jesuit  missionary,  Mermet,  who  officiated  at 
Kaskaskia,  in  the  latter  part  of  the  seventeenth 
century,  and  the  commencement  of  the  eighteenth, 
was  here  before  tho  year  1712,  accompanying  the 
Sieur  Juchereau,  a  Canadian  officer,  who  came  from 
the  French  posts  on  the  Mississippi,  to  establish  a 
military  post  here.  It  is  fairly  to  be  presumed 
that  "  Father  Senat, "  who  accompanied  "  Vin- 
Benne,"  in  the  expedition  against  the  Chickasaw 
Indians,  in  1736,  in  which  engagement  he  was  taken 
prisoner,  and  burnt  at  the  stake,  although  he  might 


CATHQJ^Ip  CHURCH. 


145 


have  escaped,  (preferring  to  remain  and  solace  and 
assist  the  prisoners,)  officiated  here  previous  to  the 
departure  of  the  troops  on  that  expedition;  but  this 
is  but  mere  ponjecture.'  The  first  entry  on  the 
church  recorcis  here,  is  dated  April  21st,  1749. 
There  is  neithei*  title  page  nor  introduction.  The 
first  entry  is  the  certificate  of  marriage  between 
"Julien  Trattier,  of  Montreal,  Canada,  and  Josette 
Marie,  the  daughter  of  a  Frenchman  and  an  Indian 
woman."  The  only  baptisms  recorded  during  the 
year,  are  those  of  the  Indian  adults.  One  of  the 
first  deaths  was  Madam  Trattier,  aged  eighteen 
years,  whose  marriage  we  have  above  rocorded. 
She  was  but  a  short  time  a  bride,  having  been  buried 
in  December,  1750,  in  the  church,  under  her  pew,  on 
the  "Gospel  side" — ^so  says  the  record.  The  resi- 
dent priest  was  "Father  Sebastian  Louis  Meurin." 
All  certificates  except  those  of  deaths  are  sigiied  by 
"M.  de  St.  Ange,  Lieutenant  of  Marines  arid  Com- 
mandant for  the  King,  at  Post  Vincennes."  Father 
Meurin  left  in  1753.  His  last  official  act  was  the 
burial  of  "  the  wife  of  a  Corporal  in  the  garrison, 
March,  1753."  He  was  succeeded  by  "Father 
Louis  Vivier."  His  first  recorded  act  is  a  marriage. 
May  20th,  1753.  On  the  24th  of  the  same  month 
he  buried  "Pierre  Leonardy,  Lieutenant  of  the  gar- 
rison." His  last  record  is  dated  August  28th,  1756. 
The  number  of  baptisms  and  marriages  is  small, 
but  increasing.  Half  of  them  are  of  "Hed  or  Indian 
Slaves"  belonging  to  the  Commandant  and  to  the 
inhabitants.    It  was  a  number  of  years  after  the 


y 


m 


i 


1^ 


m 


? 


If 


?-? 


«|-^ 


t46 


AFPENDIX. 


departure  of  tHe  Jesuits,  who  had  officiated  as 
priests  until  about  the  year  1760,  that  another 
priest  visited  Vincennes.  During  the  interregnum, 
one  "Philibert,"  Notary  Public,  administered  bap- 
tism  as  a  layman,  privately,  and  duly  recorded  the 
names  of  those  to  whom  he  administered  the  rile, 
on  the  register. 

In  February,  1770,  »M.  Gibault,  Vicar  GTeneral 
of  the  Bishop  of  Quebec,  for  Illinois  and  the  adjoin- 
ing counties,"  made  his  first  visit  to  Vincennes.  In 
March  he  returned*  to  Kaskaskia,  the  usual  place  of 
his  residence,  but  f6r  several  years  continued  to 
pay  occasionar  visits  to  the  Post.  He  was  for  a 
time  the  only  priest  in  Indiana,  "  His  zeal  and 
energy  were  wonderful,  his  labors  almost  surpassing 
belief."  "We  have  in  a  former  part  of  this  work 
devoted  several  pages  to  the  exertions  of  this  great 
and  good  man.  We  find  from  -the  records  of  the 
church,  that  in  July,  1778,  he  was  at  Vincennes, 
exerting  himself  successfully  in  inducing  the  French 
inhabitants  to  declare  in  favor  of  the  United  States, 
against  Great  Britain.  In  the  wooden  chapel  of 
"  St.  Francis  Xavier,"  which  we  have  before  de- 
scribed, (ard  which,  if  for  no  other  reason  should  be 
made  historical,)  he  administered  to  them  the  oath 
of  allegiance  to  the  United  States,  in  the  most  sol- 
emn manner.  Being  from  Canada,  he  was  an 
English  sufyjed,  and  risked  everything  in  taking  part 
with  the  Americans.  He  conciliated  the  Indian 
tribes,  and  rendered  them  friendly  to  the  Ameri- 
cans. Nor  can  there  oe  a  doubt  that  the  efforts  of 
this  good  friend,  with  the  aid  of  Vigo,  and  the 


CA.THOLIC  CHURCH. 


147 


bravery  and  skill  of  Clark,  acquired  the  whole  of 
the  North-Western  Territory,  as  a  rich  appanage 
to  that  which  the  United  States  already  held.  "It 
is  a  remarkable  fact,  (says  Bishop  Spaulding  in  his 
life  of  Bishop  Flaget,  one  of  the  early  pioneers  of 
the  church  at  Yincennes,  and  to  whose  work  I  am 
greatly  indebted  for  its  chronological  history,)  and 
highly  creditable  to  the  French  settlers,  and  indica- 
tive of  the  humanizing  influence  of  the  Catholic 
religion,  that  during  the  period  of  which  we  are 
speaking,  there  is  not  found  among  the  numerous 
deaths  recorded,  a  single  instance  of  a  murder  com.' 
mitted  by  an  Indian !  Nor  is  there  in  the  register 
any  intimation  of  hostile  feelings  entertained  by 
even  one  of  the  tribes  against  the  whites."  In  July, 
1779,  M.  Gibault  again  visited  Vincennes,  then  in 
possession  of  the  Americans.  He  remained  three 
weeks,  discharging  the  duties  of  his  office.  Five 
years  elapsed  without  a  visit  from  a  priest,  when 
M.  Gibault  reappeared'  in  1784,  accompanied  by  the 
Rev.  M.  Payet.  In  May,  1786,  M.  Gibault  estab- 
lished himself  at  the  "Post,"  as  the  resident  pastor. 
He  remained  here  until  October,  1789,  when  he 
finally  left  Vincennes,  having  probably  been  recall- 
ed to  Canada  by  the  Bishop  of  Quebec.  A  layman, 
Pierre  Mallet,  acted  as  "  guardian  of  the  church," 
having  been  thus  appointed  by  M.  Gibault,  until 
the  arrival  of  M.  Flaget,  in  1792.  In  1793,  the 
small-pox  raged  with  great  violence.  In  that  year 
there  were  no  less  than  seventy-six  deaths  among  the 
parishioners,  and  M.  Flaget,  exhausted  with  his 
"labors  of  love"  among  the  people,  nearly  fell  a  vie- 


I 


"M 


148 


APPENDIX. 


m 


m 


I 


n 


p 

¥ 


tim  to  the  pestilence.    M.  Iflaget  remained  hero 
nearly  two  years,  when  he  was  recalled  to  Balti- 
more by  his  sui^eriors.    No  man  was  ever  more 
beloved  by  his  parishioners  than  this  excellent  naan 
and  most  exemplary  priest.    The  "ancient  inhabit- 
ants "  speak  of  him  to  this  day,  with  unqualified 
love  and  admiration.    So  entirely  devoted  were  the 
people  of  Vincennes  to  him,  that  when  he  took  his 
final  leave  of  them,  to  spare  their  feelings,  he  took 
his  departure  as  if  going  to  Kaskaskia.    Nor  was 
it  until  his  escort  returned,  that  the  people  learned 
that  he  had  probu]bl>  luft  them  forever.     M.  Rivet 
.succeeded  him  as  priest,  and  remained  here  until 
liis  death,  in  1804.     There  appears  to  have  been  no 
regularly  stationed  priest  here  for  a  period  of  about 
two  vears.   Those  who  officiated  here  were  here  but  a 
short  time,  and  were  attached  to  the  missions  in  the 
Illinois,  or  to  the  diocese  of  Kentucky.    M.  Flaget, 
(•orsecrated  "Bishop  of  Bardstown,"  revisited  Vin- 
cennes in  1814,  much  to  the  joy  of  those  of  his  old 
{)arishioners  who  were  living;  and  again  in  1819,  in 
1823,  and  1832,  which  was  his  last  visit,  to  meet 
Bishop  llosati,  with  a  view  of  recommending  some 
tit  person  to  the  head  of  the  See  of  Vincennes. 
Their  choice  fell  upon  that  most  excellent  man,  and 
learned  aid  pious  prelate,  Dr.  Simon  Brute,  of 
iilmot+sville,  Maryland.     The  first  Bishop  of  Vin- 
cennes,  Bishop  Flaget,  died  at  Louisville,  in  the 
month  of  February,  1850,  full  of  years,  ripe  in  ec. 
clesiastical  honors,  and  universally  beloved  by  all 
\\'ho  knew  him.     The  small  chapel  of  "St.  Francis 
Xavier"  has  been  turned  into  a  cathedral — the 


CATHOLIC  CHURCH. 


14^ 


parish,  which  in  the  last  half  century  had  not  even 
a  settled  priest,  but  depended  on  the  ministrations 
of  those  who  occasionally  came  here  from  abroad, 
has  become  the  head  of  a  diocese.    While  such  has 
been  the  progress  of  the  church,   that  even  this, 
within  the  last  year,  has  been  divided ;  and  instead 
of  the  single  priest,  who  once  distributed  the  mes- 
sages of  love  and  peace  to  a  few  poor  Frenchmen, 
Indiana  has  now  two  diocesan  Bishops,  probably 
sixty  priests,  one  hundred  and  twenty  churches  or 
chapels,  and  a  Catholic  population  of  not  less  than 
eighty  thousand  inhabitants.  Truly,  the  small  wood- 
en chapel  of  "St.  Francis  Xavier,"  has  been  the 
"Alma  Mater"  of  the  Catholic  church  in  Indiana. 
It  is  an  historical  fact,  whatever  we  Protestants 
may  say  to  the  contrary,  that  the  influence  of  the 
Catholic  priests,   particularly  the  Jesuits  in  the 
eighteenth    century,    over  the  tribes   which  sur- 
rounded them,  and  for  whose  conversion  to  Chris- 
tianity they  labored  with  unceasing  devotion  and 
energy,  was  much  greater  than  those  of  any  other 
religious  denomination  that  ever  ministered  to  their 
spiritual  wants;  this  is  peculiarly  the  case  with 
those  tribes  dwelling  in  that  portion  of  the  North- 
Western  Territory,  out  of  which  has  been  created 
the  «tate  of  Indiana.     No  class  of  men  ever  endured 
greater  sufferings,  or  made  greater  sacrifices  for  the 
cause  they  were  engaged  in.    From  the  time  when 
Marquette    discovered   the  Mississippi,   in  1673, 
until  the  suspension  of  the  order  of  Jesuits,  in  1773, 
a  century  after,  these  followers  of  the  cross  were 
f 'instant  in  season  and  out  of  season,"  in  their  efforts 


160 


AFPEWDUL 


11 

m 


^. 


to  convert  the  Indian  tribes  dwelling  between  the 
Lakes  and  the  Ohio— the  Miami  and  the  Missis- 
sippi. Even  those  who  were  temporarily  assigned 
to  duty  at  the  French  villages  on  the  Wabash  and 
Mississippi,  viewed  the  conversion  of  the  Indian 
as  the  chief  object  of  their  missions  in  the  West, 
and  inscribed  upon  the  registers  of  the  church  the 
great  fact,  that  while  ministering  to  the  wants  of 
others  of  their  flock,  the  great  purpose  which  called 
them  here  was  to  convert,  if  possible,  the  savage^ 
to  the  adoration  of  the  only  tnae  God.  Hence, 
Father  Rivet,  one  of  the  most  zealous  and  laborious 
of  the  order,  inscribed  upon  the  records  of  the 
church  here,  that  he  was  "missionary  appointed  for 
the  savages,  exercising  the  ministry, /or  fAe  moment, 
in  the  parish  of  'St.  Francis  Xavier.'"  And  the 
same  register  shows  the  baptism  and  marriage  of 
many  Indiana  of  the  different  tribes  residing  along 
the  Wabash — the  Pottawotomies,  Miamies,  Shaw- 
nees,  Piankeshaws,  and  Weas — while  performing 
his  parochial  duties  at  this  place.  This  success 
was  wonderful.  Out  of  one  village,  composed  of 
six  hundred  Indians,  all  of  them  were  baptized, 
with  the  exception  of  five  or  six.  They  had  to 
adopt  the  migratory  habits  of  the  Indians — they 
followed  them  to  their  hunting  grounds,  "lifted  up 
their  tabernacles  in  the  wilderness,"  and  adminis- 
tered the  ordinances  of  the  church  to  these  sons  of 
the  forest,  whenever  and  wherever  an  opportunity 
might  oifer.  But  it  was  not  only  toil,  hunger,  cold, 
that  these  missionaries  of  the  Cross  were  called 
upon  to  endure,  but  many,  very  many  were  toma- 


\ 


CATHOLIC  CHUBCH. 


151 


hawked,  or  what  was  far  worse,  burnt  at  the  stake, 
with  a  cruelty  and  malignity  which  only  the  savage 
could  feel  or  perpetrata  It  is  recorded  of  one  of 
these  followers  of  Loyala,  that  after  having  been 
tied  to  the  stake,  and  prepared  for  the  sacrifice,  at 
the  suggestion  of  one  ef  the  chiefs  he  was  taken 
down,  and  both  his  hands  cut  off  at  the  wrist,  with 
a  view,  as  was  said,  of  preventing  him  from  per- 
forming the  offices  of  ihe  church.  The  mangled 
flesh  was  seared  with  a  burning  brand,  and  the 
good  man  left  in  the  midst  of  his  tortures,  to  re- 
cover as  he  could.  Strange  to  say,  ihe  did  recwer, 
and  having  been  ransomed  from  the  tribe,  returned 
to  France.  When  he  presented  a  memorial  to  the 
head  of  the  church  to  allow  him,  mutilated  as  he 
was,  to  perform  high  mass,  the  answer  from  the 
Pope  was  as  eloquent  as  it  was  affecting: 

**  Indignum  esaet.  Cbristi  martyrum, 
Non  bibere,  Christi  sanguinemi" 

The  gifts  of  potentates  and  powers,  the  resolu- 
tions of  senates,  and  the  decrees  of  academies  and 
colleges,  to  the  most  meritorious  of  military,  civil, 
or  scientific  men,  fall  far  short  of  the  pathos  and 
gratitude  expressed  in  this  short  answer  to  the 
prayer  of  the  petitioner.  The  history  of  these  men 
shows  that  neither  danger  nor  death  deterred  them 
for  a  moment  in  carrying  out  the  great  object  of 
tlieir  life,  the  conversion  of  the  Indian  tribes  spread 
along  the  borders  of  our  Northern  Lakes,  and  along 
Hihe  valleys  of  the  Wabash  and  Illinois.  No  sooner 
was  it  understood  that  their  predecessors  had  per- 
ished, either  at  the  stake  or  by  the  scalping-knife 


162 


APPENDIX; 


/.  i 


of  the  Indian,  than  new  recruits  offei-ed  their  ser- 
vices to  fill  their  places.  In  fact,  if  we  believe  the 
statements  of  these  men,  which  have  come  down  to 
us,  and  there  can  be  no  doubt  of  their  truth,  a  mis- 
sion among  these  barbarous  tribes,  was  a  "labor  of 
love"  to  these  heralds  of  the  Cross.  Starting  from 
Quebec,  long  before  a  white  man  had  ever  visited 
the  great  West,  they  traversed  our  Northern  Lakes, 
established  missionary  stations  along  its  borders, 
crossed  the  portage  between  the  Fox  and  the  Wis- 
consin, descended  the  Mississippi,  established  chap- 
els at  Pcoriu,  then  called  St.  Louis,  at  Cahokia, 
Prairie  du  Roche  and  Kaskaskia,  at  St.  Joseph, 
Ouiatanon,  and  Vincennes.  In  fine,  wherever  be- 
tween the  Lakes  and  the  Ohio,  a  chapel  could  be 
erected,  at  whose  altar  the  Indian  could  be  brought 
to  worship,  they  set  it  up,  and  gathered  around  it 
every  member  of  the  tribe  who  was  freed  from  the 
influence  and  charlatanery  of  their  "  medicine  men." 
That  their  success  was  great,  the  love  and  devotion 
of  that  portion  of  them,  small  in  number,  which 
exist  at  this  date,  to  the  ^^Rohes  Noir,^^  afibrds 
abundant  evidence.  And  there  are  but  few  of  the 
chiefs  of  those  tribes,  who  once  lorded  it  along 
the  valleys  of  the  Illinois  and  the  Wabash,  now 
transferred  to  their  new  hunting  gi'ounds  bevond 
rhe  Mississippi,  but  what  wear  the  symbol  of  tiieir 
Savior's  suffering  around  their  necks,  to  them  a 
proud  memorial  of  their  conversion  to  the  Chris- 
tian faith.  It  is  not  for  me  to  say,  what  were  the 
influences  which  gave  to  these  intelligent  and  well 
educated  men,  such  an  influence  with  the  tribes 


CATHOLIC  CHURCH. 


153 


j> 


among  Which  they  lived,  such  a  control  over  their 
conduct,  that  so  eifectually  disarmed  their  ani- 
mosity to  the  white  man,  and  removed  their  preju- 
dices to  a  very  great  degree  against  our  race.  But 
that  it  was  so  in  a  degree  far  superior  to  that  of  any 
other  Christian  sect,  so  far  as  the  Indian  race  is 
concerned,  is,  I  think,  proved  by  all  experience,  in 
the  various  missions  established  among  the  tribes. 
The  French  have  almost  always  succeeded  in  con- 
ciliating them,  while  the  Anglo-Saxon  has  made 
but  little  progress  in  claiming  their  confidence  or 
their  affection.  It  may  be  that  the  manners  of  the 
two  races  may  have  something  to  do  with  it — the 
one  always  affable,  always  polite,  always  courteous 
—the  other  more  a  matter-of-fact  man,  and  with 
but  few  of  those  qualifications  which,  on  first  ac- 
quaintance, give  him  credit,  and  induce  the  stranger 
to  place  his  trust  in  him.  It  may  be  that  the  reli- 
gious forms  and  ceremonies  of  the  Catholic  and 
Protestant  churches,  have  had  their  influences 
in  leading  the  Indian  to  adopt  the  creed  of  the  first, 
instead  of  the  latter.  It  may  be,  that  that  love  of 
gain,  so  inherent  in  the  one  race  and  not  in  the 
other,  has  had  the  effect  to  direct  the  attention  of 
one,  to  things  temporal,  to  the  neglect  of  things 
spiritual.  For  whatever  may  be  said  of  the  Indian 
race,  they  are  as  quick  to  discern  the  motives  of 
men  as  their  neighbors,  the  whites.  A  century  and 
a  half  since  there  dwelt  in  the  now  State  of  Maine, 
along  the  Canadian  borders,  a  large  tribe  of  Indians 
called  the  "  Abnakis."  The  Jesuits  had  established 
missions  among  them.    The  English  and  French 


If 


m 


164 


APPENDIX. 


li 


m 


\& 


Ut 


m 


were  at  war— one  of  the  villages  of  the  "Abnakis" 
had  been  attacked  by  the  English,  and  the  chapel 
erected  in  it  burnt.  Peace  having  been  concluded, 
and  Boston  being  nearer  to  the  settlements  of  the 
tribe  than  Quebec,  the  Indians  deputized  some  of 
the  principal  men  of  the  nation  to  go  to  Boston,  for 
the  purpose  of  engaging  workmen  to  rebuild  the 
church,  promising  to  pay  them  for  their  labors. 
The  Governor  received  the  chiefs  with  great  demon- 
strations of  friendship,  and  treated  them  with  great 
hospitality.  At  a  council,  he  addressed  them  as 
follows:  "My  children,  I  desire  above  all  things  to 
re-establish  your  church,  and  will  do  much  more  for 
you  than  the  French  Governor,  whom  you  call  your 
*Pather.'  It  belongs  properly  to  him  to  rebuild 
it,  inasmuch  as  in  one  sense  he  was  the  cause  of  its 
destruction.  In  inducing  jou  to  make  war  against 
the  English,  what  could  I  do  but  defend  myself; 
while  on  the  contrary,  he,  after  persuading  you  to 
assist  him  in  the  war  against  us,  deserted  you.  I 
will  do  much  better  by  you  than  he  eve*  did,  for  I 
will  not  only  provide  you  with  laborers  for  the  ejec- 
tion of  your  church,  but  will  pay  them  myself,  and 
defray  all  the  lexpenses  of  its  construction.  But  it 
is  no  more  than  right,  that  being  an  Englishman,  if 
I  rebuild  your  church,  I  should  also  provide  you 
with  an  English  pastor^  to  take  care  of  your  •church, 
and  to  instruct  you  in .  your  religion.  I  will  send 
you  one,  with  whom  you  will  be  much  pleased,  and 
you  can  send  back  to  Quebec  the  French  Pastor, 
who  is  now  at  your  village."  -fir,/  ., ;  ^•^{; 
"Your  language  astonishes  me,"  said  the  deputy 


CATHOLIC  CHUBCH. 


155 


of  the  savages,  "  and  I  wonder  at  the  proposition 
you  have  made  us.  Listen:  When  you  came  here, 
for  you  have  known  us  long  before  the  Governor  of 
Canada  became  acquainted  with  our  people,  neither 
those  who  preceded  you,  nor  your  ministers,  ever 
spoke  to  us  of  prayer,  or  the  Great  Spirit.  They 
looked  at  our  peltries,  at  our  beaver  skins,  and  our 
elk  skins ;  and  it  was  of  them  alone  they  took  a 
thought — ^it  was  these  only  that  they  sought  with 
eagerness.  I  could  not  furnish  them  in  sufficient 
abundance;  and  when  I  furnished  them  a  large 
quantity,  I  vf&s  their  jfreat  friend^  their  ^ood  brother ^ 
and  all  that.  On  the  other  hand,  my  canoe  one 
day  going  astray,  I  lost  my  way,  and  waiwleTing  for 
a  long  time  uncertain  which  course  to  pursue,  I 
found  myself  eventually  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Quebec,  and  in  a  largo  village  of  the  Algonquins, 
whom  the  "EobesNoir"  were  teaching.  I  had 
merely  landed,  when  a  Jesuit  came  to  see  me,  I 
was  loaded  with  peltries.  The  Jesuit  scarcely  deign- 
ed to  look  at  them.  He  spoke  to  me  of  the  Great 
Spirit,  of  Paradise,  of  Hell,  and  of  Prayer,  as  the 
only  means  of  getting  to  Heaven.  I  heard  him 
with  pleasure,  and  enjoyed  his  conversation  so 
much,  that  I  remained  at  the  village  for  some  time 
to  listen  to  him.  In  fact,  the  prayer  pleased  me  so 
much^  that  I  employed  him  to  instruct  me.  I  ask- 
ed to  be  baptised.  I  received  baptism.  At  last  I 
returned  to  my  own  country.  I  narrated  whst  had 
happened  to  me.  Every  one  envied  my  good  for- 
tune. All  wished  to  partieifuite  in  it,  and  were 
desirous  of  seeking  out  the  Black  Robe  immedi- 


1'^^ 


156 


APPENDIX. 


\ 


lV:h 


Wi 


ately,  and  demanding  baptism.  Such  has  been  the 
conduct  of  the  French  towards  us.  If  you  had  seen 
lis  first,  and  spoken  to  us  concerning  prayers,  We 
should  have  had  the  misfortune  to  pray  as  you 
English  do,  for  we  should  not  have  had  the  capacity 
to  discern  whether  we  prayed  right  or  not.  So  I 
shall  stick  to  the  French  prayers.  It  suits  me  well, 
and  I  will  adhere  to  it  until  the  world  is  burnt  and 
destroyed.  Keep  your  workmen,  your  money,  and 
vour  minister.  I  psk  for  neither."  ^  -  <  ..  ■ 
MoBAL. — In  striving  for  the  conversion  of  the 
Indian,  it  is  better  to  talk  with  him  about  prayers 
i\\^n  peltries.       '  -    >  i   ^  w  .        .  u . 


i    '   '  .t 


■;    i\ 


i"\ 


■■■■'  :i  ^ 

1,1  .1;  ■'• 


:  I*.        .lit'!,  I    fi'>    .•* 

•    ,   >    i-f  .     .-  ;i.     ■ 
■J  ,     \.'r.\\s'Mi'n  \    ; 
y''  ,-"■   ;;■  n'      .rr iii  •;: 

■1    > '      (       /  -         . .'  I '     •   ;  ■  •        I     :     '.        ••  (      ■.,.?■' 

f-r^^  inri  >f  |,  .:;/,  ;,,'5t  \  •  ;  •      ._>  -'v;,!      :  .  •  j 

•>'iv  ■  •   1   ;;;   ,f!    ;,:  •:»':^;-" -.Ji  v{  <>\  UuJ^l -/   ':'■ 
-'bc)!;Lf!:i  0'f*/'I  7hi^(l.  ■  ilt  hm  'UQiA^r--.  ^n 


1 


if     ) 

.1..  'i.  Al     r 


iif 


'  ;■  i 


ifiif! 


■'  JJit  WWBPIPP" 


X. 


LIST 


OF  BFPBCTIVB  MEN    BBLONGING  TO   CAPT.    PIERRE    OA&IEUN'S  COMMAS t 
AT  POST  VINOENNES,  JULY  4TH,  1790. 


1  Christopher  Wyant,  Ensign, 

2  Peter  Thorn,  Sergeant, 

3  Frederick  Mehl,   do, 

4  Jeremiah  Mays,    do, 

5  Richard  Johnson,  Cadet, 


6  Robert  Johnson, 

7  Joseph  Cloud, 

8  Daniel  Pea, 

9  John  Loc, 

10  Godfrey  Peters, 

11  John  Murphy, 

12  John  Laferty, 

13  Frederick  Barger, 

14  George  Barger, 

15  Peter  Barger, 

16  Frederick  Midler, 

17  Benj.Beckes, 

18  Robert  Day, 

19  Edward  Shoebrook, 

20  John  Westfall, 

21  Edward  Johnson, 

22  Joshua  Harbin, 

23  John  Robbins, 

24  John  Martin, 

26  Abraham  Westfall, 
26  James  Watts, 


27  Thomas  Jordan, 

28  William  Smith, 

29  Daniel  Smith, 

30  James  Johnson, 

31  Ezekiel  Holiday, 

32  Michael  Thorne, 

33  Solomon  Thorne, 

34  Daniel  Thorne, 

35  Charles  Thorne, 

36  Christian  Barkman, 

37  Abraham  Barkman, 

38  John  Rice  Jones, 

39  Patrick  Simpson, 

40  John  Wilmore, 

41  Frederick  Lindsy, 

42  Mathew  Dibbons, 

43  Hugh  Demsey, 

44  JohnCulbert, 

45  Robert  Garavert, 

46  Isaac  Carpenter. 


